SIXTH DAY. 101 



could easily have shot it, so closely and steadily did it 

 hover like a hawk over the nest, screaming loudly. 



The two young ones were already a good size, but still 

 covered with down. We rolled them carefully in mv plaid, 

 put the dead eagle beside them, and were going onwards 

 when my jager begged me to visit a buzzard's nest which he 

 had discovered a little way off. 



I found this very common inhabitant of all the Lower 

 Austrian woods in its nest, and though I had so often killed it 

 in the most varied localities, it was the first time that we had 

 met with it in the " auen " during this trip; for in the forests 

 of Apatin we had not seen a single individual of this species, 

 either nesting or even flying about. Directly the stem of 

 the tree was lightly tapped, the bird left its nest and fell to 

 my first shot. 



Time was now pressing, as we were to begin our onward 

 journey before noon ; so we hurried back, and in about half 

 an hour I reached the deck of the steamer, with my Sea-Eagle, 

 Black Stork, Common Buzzard, and the two live young 

 Sea-Eagles. 



My brother-in-law, who had got back before me, had also 

 killed a remarkably large Sea-Eagle. 



My conjecture had been well grounded, for the first two 

 gun-shots which I had heard had not done the least damage 

 to the eagle, which my brother-in-law had found at its nest ; 

 bat about half an hour afterwards the bird had returned, and 

 as it was settling on the edge of its eyrie Leopold's un- 

 erring rifle brought it down. He had also visited the nests of 

 a Goshawk and of some Kites, at which, however, he had not 

 met with any further success. 



The two Savants had again been unlucky with their Sea- 

 Eagles, and returned with only one Goshawk, which Homeyer 

 had shot, and with some small birds killed for scientific 

 purposes. 



