CHAPTER V 



SOME BIRDS OF THE HEIGHTS 



The Golden Eagle The Blackcock The Raven The Snow 

 Bunting The Mountain Linnet The Ring Ouzel. 



EVERYONE will agree that Storm Petrels are birds of 

 the open sea, that Water Ouzels are birds of the 

 streams, that Curlews are birds of the moorland and 

 seashore, that Waterhens are birds of the ponds, that 

 Woodpeckers are birds of the forests, and so on. The 

 question is, whether there are birds distinctive of the 

 heights. We think that the question, if not pressed 

 too closely for birds are extraordinarily plastic, this 

 being their privilege of brains should be answered 

 in the affirmative; and we have taken six examples 

 the Golden Eagle, the Blackcock, the Raven, the 

 Snow Bunting, the Mountain Linnet, and the Ring 

 Ouzel. 



The first place must be given to a magnificent bird, 

 the Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetus), which holds its 

 own in the Scottish Highlands, and has a wide range 

 in many mountainous regions of the Northern Hemi- 

 sphere. It has suffered from its size (the female bird 

 is within an inch of being a yard long, and the male 

 within four inches), which makes it a good target for 

 ignorant and ruthless "shots," and also from absurd 

 stories that have been circulated about its ability to 

 carry off children and its habit of killing sheep. But 



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