358 



EAGLE. 



the scapulars marked with large spots of greyish 

 white. They have similar spots on the secondary 

 quills, and the upper parts of the wings are markec 

 with smaller yellowish spots. It is when in this Im- 

 mature state that it is called the spotted eagle. 



THE WEDGE-TAILED EAGLE A. fucosa. Why this 

 soecies should be called fucosa, or " painted," it is 

 not easy to say, unless it be on account of the depth 

 of its colour ; for the tints are any thing but rich. It 

 general colour is a dull brownish black, with a red- 

 dish tinge on the breast. It is a native of New Hol- 

 land, and has not been found out of that country. 

 Its form, its air, and its linear dimensions, bear no 

 inconsiderable resemblance to those of the golden 

 eagle ; but it is more slender and feeble, and the 

 wedge-shaped tail, different from the broad fan-tail 

 of the golden eagle, indicates a very considerable 

 difference of habit. The broad fan-tail indicates a 

 bird which has the habit of frequent ascent and 

 descent, which is that of the golden eagle, and indeed 

 of all birds that have the tail of that form, whether 

 they be birds of high flight, like the eagle, or only 

 birds that leap up to their perches, or rise to avoid 

 enemies upon the ground. The wedge-shaped 

 (ail, again, almost invariably indicates a bird which 

 has to make its way through some sort of tanglement, 

 the- boughs and branches of trees, bushes, or tall 

 herbage of some kind. The species of eagle under 

 notice, of which a specimen has been at the gardens 

 of the Zoological Society of London, is described as 

 feeding on the emeu, and the young of the kangaroo ; 

 but in what manner it captures its prey, whether by 

 stooping, like the eagles properly so called, by poun- 

 cing on them, by level flight, from caves, or by any 

 other method, has not been said, neither have we any 

 correct information respecting the nest-building or 

 the other habits of the bird. 



These are the principal species of eagles, pro- 

 . perly so called, that inhabit the land, and for the most 

 part feed upon warm-blooded animals only. The 

 probability is, that there are more in those places, the 

 mountains and forests of which have not yet been 

 explored. But tne forests of tropical countries are 

 not proper localities for the typical eagles ; they are 

 too rich and tangled for allowing these birds to act ; 

 and, therefore, we may rather expect to find in'them 

 vultures, or those short-winged fishing eagles which 

 feed readily upon carrion, and otherwise appear to 

 have not a little of the vulture in their composition. 



All those land eagles have the under or concave 

 sides of the toes of a more trenchant and tearing 

 character than those that fish, the claws of the latter 

 having more of the character of prehensile hooks. No 

 doubt they can inflict very severe wounds ; and as 

 their points are generally finer, they can penetrate 

 the body of an animal with the exertion of less force. 

 The toes are also more adapted for -clutching, so as 

 to take a hold, and lift and carry a weight ; and the 

 tarsi are bare of feathers and covered with reticulated 

 scales, like those of the wading birds. 



These differences of structure are very well adapted 

 to their differences of habit, so much so that if we 

 be well acquainted with the habits of any one of 

 either of the subdivisions, we can have no difficulty 

 in judging of the leading habit of any other from the 

 structure. The land eagles do not require the very 

 fine points to their claws, and in the case of those 

 who tenant the rocks, the fine points would be apt to 

 be broken or worn, notwithstanding that they are not 



used directly on the surface of the stone. Their prey 

 is on the ground when they penetrate it with their 

 talons ; and thus they act against a solid resistance ; 

 and as this compensates for the comparative blunt- 

 ness of the claw, and the blunted claw inflicts >by 

 much the more severe and painful wound, it is the 

 best one for their habits. We find a parallel cuse in 

 the teeth of the lion, which, though large and pu\vcr- 

 ful, are comparatively blunt. But the fishing eagles 

 have to strike their finny prey against the water only, 

 which has no cohesion as the earth has, and there- 

 fore, it gives way like an elastic spring ; and if the 

 points of the claws were not very sharp, they would 

 not penetrate the skin of the fish. So, also, if they 

 were furrowed and grooved like the talons of the laud 

 eagles, which use theirs in killing the prey, and not 

 in clutching it for the mere purpose of lifting, they 

 would tear and lacerate, and, in the case of a heavy 

 fish, cut their way out of its substance. By being 

 round and smooth on their under sides, the talons of 

 the fishing eagles have no tendency to do this. The 

 articulations of the toes are also admirably fitted for 

 retaining a powerful hold. They contract much more 

 completely in the distal joints than those of the land 

 eagles ; they, in fact, bend till the point of the claw is 

 on the same level with the root, and thus every single 

 claw lifts like a perfect hook, while the connexion of 

 the foot keeps them all in their places. The strain 

 of the clutching is at the same time not wholly upon 

 the muscles which contract the toes, for the bird does 

 not dangle the fish with the toes, at full length, but 

 binds all the joints, which throws part of the strain 

 upon the ligament, and the rest of it is parted among 

 all the muscles of the leg. 



There are considerable differences of structure and 

 habit among the fishing eagles ; some of them approach 

 the land eagles in many of their characters ; and the 

 ones that do so are long-winged, and prey upon land 

 animals, as well as upon the produce of the sea ; 

 others, which are still longer winged, are more exclu- 

 sively aquatic, and they have the feet most approach- 

 ing to that form which we have described as a proper 

 fishing foot ; and others, again, have the wings shorter 

 and broader, living more in the vicinity of those waters 

 the banks of which are thickly covered with trees ; 

 and they partake in some measure of the habits of the 

 vultures, and also of the hawk, they eat carrion and 

 any offal -that comes in their way, and they also clute 

 jirds on the wing, and strike them in the air, which 

 s not a habit of the true or typical eagles. It is not, 

 Derhaps, very easy to follow accurately the distribu- 

 ;ion of these ; and many of them, like those who inha- 

 )it the dense forests, are but imperfectly known ; but 

 we shall begin with those that are most nearly allied 

 to the land eagles. 



THE ASH-COLOURED EAGLE (A. cinerea). This 

 species is common on many places of all the shores 

 of Britain, and hence it has various names. In many 

 )laces it is " the eagle " simply, because it is the only 

 >ne which makes its appearance. It is also often 

 jailed the " white-tailed eagle," from the colour of its 

 ail; in some places it is " the bog eagle ;" and in 

 hose parts of the lowlands of Scotland where it is 

 >opularly known, it is called the " erne." The name 

 vhich we have given it is as little objectionable as 

 ny ; and it harmonises with the only other true eagle, 

 native in Britain, which gets its name from the rich 

 yellowish brown on the margins of the feathers. 



As is the case with the young of the golden eagle. 



