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ALPIXE EUROPE 



around, till it gradually descends to the ground, where it runs up to its prey like 

 a raven. The young are amply provided with carcases, bones, and other kinds of 

 food, which are broken up and torn by the old birds. The young do not leave 



the nest before they are 

 fully fledged, which is not 

 before the end of July. 

 The nest, which is never 

 defended by the old birds, 

 is placed on bare, steep 

 cliffs, or in deep clefts or 

 cavities, in the most in- 

 accessible places, and is 

 always sheltered from 

 above against weather and 

 sun. It is constructed of 

 branches, twigs, and stalks, 

 the thicker sticks below, 

 the thinner towards the 

 top, the cup being lined 

 with rootlets, heather, 

 grass, and hair. It is 

 about 5 feet wide, by a 

 yard high, and contains, 

 in January, February, or 

 March, according to the 

 climate, two eggs of a dull 

 white covered with bluish 

 i*ed spots and dull brownish 

 red blotches. One of the 

 pair is generally unfer- 

 tilised, and consequently 

 later on only one fledgling 

 is found, which grows to 

 a length of 42 inches, the 

 female being a little larger 

 than the male. The lam- 

 mergeier may be easih* 

 distinguishable from other 

 birds-of-prey by the stiff 

 bristly feathers covering 

 the eyelids, nostrils, and the 

 base of the beak, and more 

 especially by the beard on the chin, from which it derives its name of bearded vulture. 

 The game-birds are represented by the red-legged partridges, in 

 which the beak as well as the legs are red, these birds being further 

 distinguished by the spur on the hind surface of the leg, and the rows of shields on 



LAMMERfiEIER. 



Came Birds. 



