4 BIRDS OF NORFOLK. 



severe weather, he saw a fine sea eagle as near this 

 city as Postwick Grove, " beating leisurely up the river, 

 apparently searching for coots or wild fowl in the wakes 

 which remained unfrozen." The late Mr. Girdlestone, 

 of Yarmouth,, also informed Mr. Lubbock that in the 

 sharp winter of 1837 "he had three of these eagles in 

 sight at once" on Horsey warren. 



I have omitted the Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) 

 from the present list, since, although more than once 

 recorded to have been taken in Norfolk,"* it is extremely 

 doubtful whether that noble bird has ever appeared in 

 this county. From one or two of the best authorities in 

 this neighbourhood, I find that no authentic instance of 

 its occurrence has ever come to their notice, and the 

 so-called golden eagles I have myself examined, have 

 invariably proved, on more careful inspection, to be 

 young birds of the cinereous or white-tailed eagle in 

 their various stages of immature plumage. Sir Thomas 

 Brownef also, writing some two hundred years ago, 

 speaks of the not unusual appearance of " the Haliceetus 

 or Fen Eagles," but adds "the great and noble kind 

 of eagle, called Aquila gesneri (chrysaetos}, I have not 



* Under the head of the Golden Eagle, Mr. Lubbock says in 

 his local " Fauna," " Our museum possesses a specimen of this 

 rarer kind" from which one might infer that we had a Norfolk 

 killed specimen in the Norwich museum. This, however, is not 

 the case, either amongst the British or general Eaptorial series. 



f " An account of birds found in Norfolk," see Sir Thomas 

 Browne's works, edited by Simon "Wilkin, F.L.S., vol. iv., p. 313. 

 [MS. Sloan, 1830, fol. 5, 22 and 31]. Also, " Animals found in 

 Norfolk," copy from Sir T. Browne's MS. in the British museum, 

 published in the " Monthly Magazine" for 1805, pp. 106 and 410. 



These lists were undoubtedly written after 1636, in which year 

 Sir Thomas took up his residence in Norwich. He was born in 

 London in 1605, was knighted by Charles II. in 1671, died in 

 this city in 1682, and was buried in St. Peter's Mancroft. 



