UP THE MOUNTAINS. 181 



life, and consequently have a sort of vested 

 right in some certain cliff, where for years they 

 rear their offspring. The nest is often a huge 

 structure of sticks, lined with moss, dry grass, and 

 almost invariably a few tufts of a mountain plant 

 in a green state. It is built in a crevice or on the 

 sides of some lofty precipice among the moun- 

 tains. The eggs, usually two in number, some- 

 times three, are bluish white in ground colour, 

 more or less thickly blotched and sprinkled with 

 reddish brown and gray. Generally one of the 

 eggs is much more handsomely marked than the 

 other, and in some cases one will be almost en- 

 tirely without markings at all. The White-tailed 

 Eagle is just as much attached to its nesting- 

 place, but its bulky nest is placed upon the sea- 

 cliffs a precipice formed by a mountain-side 

 falling prone to the ocean being its favourite 

 home. The nest itself is very similar to the 

 Golden Eagle's, but, curiously enough, the two 

 eggs are white and colourless. In spite of what 

 has been stated to the contrary, the Eagles are 

 cowardly birds when their nests are invaded by 

 man. The popular notion is that the Eagle will 

 attack even human intruders, but such is not the 

 case ; and when disturbed from their home the 

 old birds are either content to watch our move- 

 ments whilst sitting on some distant crag, or 

 evince their anger by swooping past the face of 

 the cliff, but always well out of harm's way. This 

 is the case even when there are young birds in 

 the nest, as I have frequently proved. For 

 downright pluck in defending its nest an in- 

 furiated Missel-thrush would give any Eagle a 



