278 Reminiscences of 



trapped by putting steel traps on elevated poles where 

 the eagles alight to survey the situation, and, although 

 they often get away with a lamb or two, are pretty 

 sure to be trapped. 



If undisturbed, they will do much injury upon a 

 sheep ranch, especially at lambing time, when an 

 eagle will easily carry off a lamb a few pounds in 

 weight, and will often attack full-grown sheep, almost 

 invariably striking the latter at the back or side of the 

 neck. 



Three golden eagles lately attacked acting in 

 concert a small flock of separated sheep, and before 

 the herder could drive them away succeeded in seri- 

 ously wounding half a dozen, three of which died the 

 same day, and the balance within a week afterwards, 

 either from the direct wounds or the almost invari- 

 able blood poisoning which seems to follow when struck 

 by the talons of the eagle. 



The same result often occurs with human beings 

 when struck by eagle talons, and two of our men in 

 past years, when taking eagles from traps, were 

 wounded, one through the hand and the other in 

 the thigh, and both were many days under the care 

 of a physician for treatment. 



The one struck in the thigh had killed, as he sup- 

 posed, a trapped bald-headed eagle, when his atten- 

 tion was drawn to the mate of the trapped one, which 

 swooped upon him several times most dangerously ; and 

 while engaged in warding it off with his gun, he was 

 hard struck by the dying eagle, which firmly imbedded 

 its talons in his thigh, from which he could not dis- 

 engage himself, and while so held succeeded in shoot- 

 ing the mate. 



