276 THE GREAT FOREST EAGLE 



remained in the top of one of the lofty trees, clinging 

 firmly with its huge claws to the branches, a native 

 climbed to the summit and brought it down. Its 

 weight was judged by Mr. Whitehead at between 

 sixteen and twenty pounds, and being then weakened 

 by fever he could scarcely hold it out at arm's length. 

 Taking the mean of the two weights mentioned as 

 probably correct, the great forest eagle weighs exactly 

 half as much again as the golden eagle, the female of 

 which weighs twelve pounds. 



The skin of this bird is now preserved at the Museum 

 of Natural History at South Kensington. As it is the 

 only adult specimen in the world available for inspection 

 by naturalists, it is not exhibited in the public part of 

 the collection, and though the coloured plate by Keule- 

 mans which illustrates Mr. Ogilvie Grant's paper is a 

 model of accurate drawing, it does not leave the im- 

 pression of size given by the skin when actually seen 

 and handled. The length of the eagle and the huge 

 size of its beak and claws are the features most striking 

 in the specimen at South Kensington. Like most rap- 

 torial birds which seek their prey in woods or forests, 

 from the sparrow-hawk upwards, it has rather short 

 wings in proportion to its great bulk. The tail, on the 

 other hand, is very long. In its equipment for flight 

 and steering it is much like an enormous goshawk. 

 There are two or three such hawks, as large as many of 



