232 DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY. 



in the Miocene strata of France. The gigantic Harpagornis, from the super- 

 ficial deposits of New Zealand, was by far the largest representative of the whole 

 family. 

 wedge-TaUed The wedge-tailed eagle ( Uroaetus aiidax) of Australia is a large 



Eagle. species generically separated from the true eagles by its regularly 

 graduated wedge-shaped tail, in which, when closed, the middle pair of feathers 

 are far longer than the outer ones ; whereas in the true eagles the difference in 

 the length of the corresponding feathers is inappreciable. This fine eagle attains 

 a total of 38 inches in the male, and has the general colour of the plumage black, 

 with a yellow cere and feet. In young birds the general colour is rufous tawny. 

 These birds are found both in the forests and on the open plains of Australia 

 and Tasmania, frequently soaring at a great height in circles, with no apparent 

 movement of the wings. The large nest is invariably placed in the fork of a gum- 

 tree, sometimes at no great height from the ground. Carrion appears to be the 

 chief food of these eagles. 



The Accipitrines we have now to consider include the harpy- 

 eagles, buzzards, and their kin, forming the subfamily Buteoninca. 

 While agreeing with all the foregoing types in having the tibia considerably longer 

 than the metatarsus, they differ from them in that the posterior aspect of the 

 metatarsal segment of the leg is covered with large transverse plates instead of 

 with small reticulate scales. The largest members of this subfamily are the magni- 

 ficent harpy-eagles, which, while rivalling the true eagles in size and strength, have 

 the plated metatarsus of the buzzards, and may be easily recognised by their long 

 crests of feathers. They are exclusively American, and are mainly confined to South 

 and Central America, although one of the species ranges into Mexico. Represented 

 by three well-defined species, the harpies are referred to as many genera. The 

 Guianan harpy-eagle (Morphnus guianensis), which is the species represented in 

 our illustration, is readily characterised by the length of its tail, which is fully four 

 times as long as the metatarsus. The range of this species includes Amazonia 

 and Guiana as well as Panama. The crowned harpy (Harp)yhaliaetus coronatiis), 

 which has a more extensive distribution, extending from Northern Patagonia and 

 Chili to Central America, differs by the much shorter tail, of which the length is 

 less than thrice that of the metatarsus. Both these species agree in that the 

 interval between the summit of the nostril and the upper line of the beak is less 

 than the length of the nostril ; whereas in the true harpy (Thrysaetus harpy ia), 

 ranging from Bolivia and Paraguay to Mexico, the corresponding interval is greater 

 than the length of the nostril. 



The largest of the three is the last-named species, of which the total length is 

 38 inches. The figured species occupies a middle position in point of size, measuring 

 36 inches in length. Like the others, it has the greater portion of the metatarsus 

 naked, and a powerful and strongly-curved beak. In this species the crest is very 

 long and pointed, but varies considerably according to the age of the bird. The 

 Prince of Wied describes the head, neck, breast, abdomen, rump, and thighs as 

 being white, faintly spotted here and there with yellow ; the feathers of the back, 

 shoulders, and wing-coverts mottled with reddish grey ; the quills blackish brown, 

 with small, reddish grey oblique bars ; and the tail similarly coloured, but with the 



