32 BIRDS OF PREY. 



to the swan's ear brings more terror than the report of a gun. Now is the 

 moment to witness the eagle's powers : he ghdes through the air hke a falhng 

 star, and comes upon the timorous quarry, which, in an agony of despair, 

 seeks by various mancEuvres to elude the grasp of his cruel talons. It mounts, 

 it doubles, and willingly would plunge into the stream, were it not prevented 

 by the eagle, which, long possessed of the knowledge that by such a stratagem 

 the swan might escape him, forces it to remain in the air by attempting to 

 strike it with his talons from beneath. The poor swan has now become much 

 exhausted, and its strength fails it — it is almost at its last gasp, when its fero- 

 cious pursuer strikes with his claws the under side of its wing, and with un- 

 resisted power forces the bird to fall in a slanting direction upon the nearest 

 shore. And now the eagle presses down his powerful feet, and drives his 

 talons deep into the heart of the dying swan : he shrieks with delight as he 

 feels the last convulsions of his prey ; and the female who has watched every 

 movement of her mate, now sails to the spot to participate in the gory banquet." 

 —Audubon. 



The nest of these birds is of considerable size, and composed of the branches 

 of trees and sticks. The eggs are white, and two in number. 



The Ospreys {Pa)iduui)'^% more commonly known as the Fish-Hawks, 

 only reside in the vicinity of the sea, or of lakes and rivers abounding with 

 fish, upon which they principally subsist. Their slender form is admirably 

 adapted to this pursuit, and their strong talons enable them to seize with a 

 firm grasp their scaly and slippery prey. Their flight is heavy but easy, and 

 they fly equally well either in a straight line or in circles high in the air, where 

 they may be seen wheeling round and round, apparently without the least 

 exertion, and rarely even moving their wings. 



A rencontre between the fish-hawk and the sea-eagle, so eloquently described 

 by Wilson, equally illustrates the habits of both these tyrants of the sky : 



" Elevated on the high dead limb of some gigantic tree that commands a 

 wide view of the neighbouring shore and ocean, the sea-eagle seems calmly 

 to contemplate the motions of the various feathered tribes that pursue their 

 avocations below — the snow-white gulls slowly winnowing the air ; the busy 

 sand-pipers coursing along the sands ; trains of ducks streaming over the 

 surface ; silent and watchful cranes intent and wading ; clamorous crows, and 

 all the winged multitudes that subsist by the bounty of this vast magazine of 

 Nature. High over all there hovers one whose action instantly arrests his 

 whole attention. By his wide curvature of wing and sudden suspension in the 

 air, he knows him to be the fish-hawk settling over some devoted victim in 

 the deep. His eye kindles at the sight, and balancing himself with half-opened 

 wings on the branch, he watches the result. Down, rapid as an arrow from 

 heaven, descends the distant object of his attention, the roar of his wings 

 reaching the ear as it disappears in the deep, making the surges foafn around ! 

 At this moment the eager looks of the eagle are all ardour, and levelling his 

 neck for flight, he sees the fish-hawk emerge, struggling with his prey, and 

 mounting in the air with wild screams of exultation. These are the signals for 

 our hero, who, launching forth, instantly gives chase, and soon gains on the 

 fish-hawk, while each exerts his utmost to mount above the other, displaying 

 in these rencontres the most elegant and sublime aerial evolutions. The un- 

 encumbered eagle rapidly advances, and is just on the point of reaching his 



* The name of a kinq; of Athens. 



