86 FIFTEEN DAYS ON THE DANUBE. 
smaller hawks, storks, and many ordinary forest birds flew 
past us, and even a Spotted Hagle rose from the top of a tree 
at no great distance. Brehm had already observed one of 
these birds in the morning, and the forester told us that this 
beautiful eagle is pretty often seen in the Keskend forest, 
though it rarely breeds in it. 
After a short drive we halted and cautiously entered the 
wood, and first came across a Black Stork’s nest, where my 
brother-in-law brought down the long-legged bird with his 
shot-gun. Then we stole noiselessly on towards a huge 
oak, on the top of which stood the great nest of an Osprey ; 
but as the cunning bird was unfortunately absent, Leopold 
determined to hide in a thicket and await its return. Mean- 
while Brehm and I followed a little footpath, which soon 
brought us to a Black Stork’s nest, which was placed on the 
lowest boughs of an ancient oak. We saw the red beak of 
the beautiful wader protruding from the nest, so my com- 
panion got ready to shoot, and his murderous weapon 
immediately brought down the bird, which flew from its 
dwelling at the first noise. 
Quickly leaving the place we plunged deeper into this 
wood, which was undoubtedly the most beautiful and least 
cultivated part of the entire forest, for here the dense under- 
growth, only broken by a few isolated oaks, gave a wild 
prunitive look to the scene. 
After a short search we found another stork’s nest, which 
even the forester did not know of ; but the bird, made wary 
by the shots, flew away too soon, and, being a long way off, I 
failed to kill it. 
A few paces further on I discovered a smaller nest, belonging 
to some species of hawk, and from it a bird about the size of 
a Buzzard glided out with a quick owl-like flight, and at 
once disappeared among the bushes. My first barrel wounded 
it, and it sank towards the ground, but all our efforts to find 
