274 The Egyptian Vulture or Neophron 
personally never seen them carrying anything alive. But I believe 
that they capture both lizards and small snakes, for I have found 
fresh remains of both of these in their nests. 
Again in the majority of Neophron’s nests I have visited, and 
I have visited scores, there have been a number of mummified 
heads of the big Ocellated Lizards. True, there is a possibility 
that other birds kill and eat the lizards, leaving the heads and that 
the Neophrons pick up these, but as I have said, I believe that 
they take reptiles. That they are famous collectors of all un- 
considered trifles is well-known. A list of all the articles found 
in their nests would be simply interminable. Setting aside their 
main stand-by as scavengers of the lowest type, proofs of which 
are to be found in almost every nest, I have come across kittens, 
rats, hedgehogs, tortoises, snakes, lizards, toads, frogs, remains 
of foxes, of dogs and of fishes and lastly, a defunct young Griffon 
Vulture, all either in a putrescent or mummifed condition. In 
addition to animal remains there is usually a miscellaneous 
collection of pieces of old rope, filthy rags and paper. Among 
the more unexpected articles | may mention a small bag of flour 
crawling with mealworms and a playing card—a King of Clubs! 
The nest usually has a foundation of sticks and is warmly lined 
with goatshair and lambswool, in this respect closely resembling that 
of the Bearded Vulture, but of course on a very much smaller scale. 
Two eggs is the usual number, although sometimes only one is 
laid. These vary greatly in colour and as a rule each nest contains 
one egg much more marked than the other. The first of the pair 
laid would seem to be usually the richest in colour and for a long 
time | adopted this theory, until | came across a pair, of which the 
one with obsolete colouring was well set, whereas the darker one 
was quite fresh. From this it will be gathered that sometimes 
a considerable interval elapses between the dates of laying of the 
eggs. Some eggs are richly coloured all over with dark brown 
