18 THE BIRDS OF SHERWOOD FOREST. 



The rapacious birds usually considered as British 

 amount to thirty-three, and of these I can number nine- 

 teen as having come under my notice as rangers or 

 visitors in " merrie Sherwood/' 



The first is the Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). I 

 was aware of a reported visit of this noble bird, but as 

 I had not seen it myself, and could not authenticate its 

 occurrence, I determined to omit all mention of it. A 

 recent letter, however, from Mr. Tillery of Welbeck, to 

 The Field of January 27, confirms the report 1 had 

 heard, and enables me to include it in my list. 



It was in the winter of 1838 that the bird appeared 

 in Welbeck Park. Mr. Tillery says : 



" The lake was frozen over at the time, except in one 

 place, where a flush of warm water entered from a 

 culvert which drained the abbey. The place was 

 covered with ducks, teal, and widgeon, and I saw his 

 majesty swoop down once or twice to get one for his 

 breakfast, but unsuccessfully, as the ducks saved them- 

 selves by diving or flying off. The park-keeper got two 

 shots at him with ball on a tree, but missed him each 

 time, and he gradually got wilder, so that he could never 

 be approached again near enough for a shot. After 

 levying black mail on the young iambs, hares, and game 

 in the neighbourhood, he took himself off after a three 

 weeks' sojourn/' 



I am enabled, through the kind attention of a friend, 

 to add two individuals of another species, and that one 

 of rare general occurrence in England viz., the White- 

 tailed sea-eagle (Haliceetus albicilla) to my list. This 

 eagle appears somewhat subject to a partial southern 

 migration in the winter, and it has been usually at that 

 season that it has been noticed in England. It is also 

 



