18/2.] RAPTORIAL BIRDS OF INDIA. 71 



The natural conclusion we have arrived at is, that this part of the 

 country is too dry. I did indulge the hope that, like its ally the 

 Spotted Eagle, it too would be a marsh-loving bird ; but I think it 

 pretty safe to conclude that the two Eagles do not affect the same 

 kind of ground. Time and further research, however, is necessary 

 before this point can be authoritatively settled ; and it is just possible, 

 now that we know A. hastata, that the bird may yet occur as a rare 

 straggler near the j heels as the weather gets warmer. 



It is a matter of regret that we are still ignorant as to the food of this 

 Eagle ; for the craws of my specimens did not contain the slightest 

 vestige of any thing, notwithstanding I made careful postmortems. 

 In the stomach of the first bird I found an intestinal worm 3£ inches 

 long, which, together with all the sterna, has been preserved. They 

 were all shot about two hours after sunrise, by which time Raptores 

 in this country have generally made their morning meal. It is, how- 

 ever, very probable that grubs and earthworms may constitute a 

 good portion of their diet, and hence perhaps the reason they affect 

 newly ploughed lands. 



There are two more points connected with this bird which I should 

 mention — namely, its heavy, slow, Kite-like flight, and its excessive 

 tameness. Had this Eagle been in the least degree wary, I should 

 never have succeeded in securing a single specimen, owing to the 

 exposed trees they sit on, and the entire absence of any cover. I 

 saw only five birds, and shot them all, at a distance of 20 to 25 

 yards ; and I may add that no doubtful-looking one was passed 

 over. 



With regard to its general plumage, Aquila hastata, like Aquila 

 ncBvia, has two distinct stages, viz. the "spotted" and uniform 

 pale brown. It is, indeed, a "Spotted Eagle," just as much as the 

 latter, and, like it, probably takes several years before it assumes its 

 fully mature dress. The length of the wings, which fully equal or 

 exceed the tail, and the slight difference in the size of the sexes, are 

 remarkable features in this bird. To make its history as complete 

 as possible, I sent all my specimens to Mr. Brooks, C.E., Etawah, 

 and I am indebted to him for the following descriptions of them. 

 I was very near omitting to mention that, as far as I am aware, 

 these specimens are the first as yet recorded from the North- Western 

 Provinces, strictly so defined. 



A ( $ )• Futtehgurh district, extreme north, 28th September, 

 1871. — Cere and gape lemon-yellow ; bill pale plumbeous blue at 

 base, rest horny black ; irides hazel-brown ; feet pale yellow. 



General colour of plumage, above and below, as far as vent, hair- 

 brown ; it is, however, in the moult, and the feathers are of different 

 shades. Many of the head-feathers and neck-hackles have pale 

 tips. The bend of the wing, as also the shoulder, has a spotted 

 appearance, as most of the lesser wing-coverts are tipped with dull 

 white or pale fulvous. Upper tail-coverts light brown, and almost 

 white at junction with tail ; most of them have white tips. Tail 

 plain hoary brown, darker along the shafts of the feathers ; some of 

 them show indistinct whitish, greyish, or hoary bars, which are 



