^°1908^^] Cameron, The Golden Eagle in Montana. 259 



of the flock mounted separately until a mere speck. Meanwhile 

 the eagle endeavored to rise above one of them, but, finding this 

 impossible, he relinquished the chase and flew slowly southwards 

 in the direction of the eyrie. When their enemy was out of sight 

 the geese again resumed a V-shaped formation and continued 

 their interrupted course. The failure of the noble bird on this 

 occasion arose from the fact that he was moulting, and only acute 

 stress of hunger could have induced him to attack the geese. Ac- 

 cording to my observations the male eagle began to moult on April 

 13, as above mentioned, and had renewed his plumage by IMay 1. 

 The female moulted two months later (in the middle of June), and 

 had finished moulting by June 26, when the young were almost 

 ready to leave the nest. Her plumes could be picked up under the 

 tree. I have known a male eagle to shed four primary quills in 

 one day, and it will readily be seen what a serious handicap is here 

 imposed upon his flying powers. It may be supposed that had the 

 eagle succeeded in mounting above the goose, he would have en- 

 deavored to bind to this large quarry after the manner of a falcon. 

 Mr. Oberholser, writing of the Bald Eagle {Hab'ceetus leucocephalus) 

 attacking Canada Geese (op. cit., 11), quotes Mr. William Brewster 

 as follows: "When close upon its quarry the Eagle suddenly 

 sweeps beneath it, and turning back downwards, thrusts its power- 

 ful talons up into its breast." 



Shortly after his pursuit of the geese the eagle arrived at the 

 eyrie (where I sat on my horse watching) with a prairie dog for his 

 sitting mate. This she declined, when he took the prey to the 

 ground and ravenously ate it himself, tearing it in pieces with the 

 greatest ease. A prairie dog has a very tough hide, and a Goshawk 

 which I had at this time could make nothing of one unless an 

 incision was first made with a knife. An eagle usually places a 

 prairie dog on its back, gradually devours all the edible portion, 

 beginning near the root of the tail, and finishes by leaving a clean 

 skin with the head, feet, and tail on. 



The domestic life of the Knowlton eagles was not different in 

 any important particvilar from that of the badland birds which I 

 have already described. The male did not share the duties of 



1 Bull. Nutt. Oinith. Club, V, ISSO, pp. 57, 58. 



