THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM MAGAZINE. 



225 



Some Birds of Prey, 



By Charles Barrett, C.M.Z.S. 



AS home pets, the birds of prey are 

 not popuhir, though some per- 

 sons (eccentric, you may say) 

 have made a hobby of cherishing eagles 

 and hawks, and members of the owl 

 tribe. I am not one of these " pecuHar 

 people," but I am keen on making 

 friends with the hunting birds in their 

 native wilds, and in the course of many 

 rambles afield, with binoculars and 

 camera, I have met with a measure of 

 success. 



Perhaps it is too much to claim that 

 one has gained the confidence and 

 goodwill of eagles and hawks, unless the 

 hmitation is stated. Only young birds, 

 in the nursery or just out of it, are 

 promising subjects for overtures. My 

 photographs are the evidence that I 

 have not failed completely with them. 



COWARDLY SEA EAGLES. 



My first attack on an accipitrine 

 citadel was surprisingly successful. On 

 a little isle of the Capricorn Group, 

 Queensland, a pair of White -breasted Sea 

 Eagles {Halmtus leucogastfr) had built 

 a huge nest of sticks among low branches 

 of a Sophora bush. It contained a 

 lusty eaglet, almost ready to fly. As 

 soon as I approached, carrying a half- 

 plate stand-camera (which I find the 

 most useful size and ty])e for general 

 nature photography), the old eagles 

 flew out to sea, leaving their fledgling 

 to its fate. Not a harsh fate, luckily, 

 for I merely wished to "snap" it. 

 But the youngster, bolder than its 

 parents, greeted me as an enemy. It 

 turned on its back in the bowl of the 

 nest, and menaced me with beak and 

 claws. I tried gentle persuasion, and 

 at length the eaglet perched on the rim 

 of the nest and remained fairly quiet 

 for a minute. The camera was below, 

 focussed on the spot and all ready. A 

 quick pressure of the bulb release, the 

 shutter chcked, and my first portrait of 

 a bird of prey was secured. 



Sea Eagles, judging by evidence 

 gathered amongst the Capricorns, are 

 fond of sea snakes ; we found many 

 skeletons, apparently of these reptiles, 

 on the ground beneath several nests, 

 mingled with those of fish. 



The l)cautiful White-headed Sea Eagle 

 (HaliaMur indus) I have watched very 

 often with admiration, in the coastal 

 regions of North Queensland, but 

 hitherto it has dodged my camera. 

 These fishing birds, perched on piles or 

 rocks, and in flight, look fine in their 

 white and rich chestnut-coloured 

 plumage. 



Whistling Eagles are not rare, and 

 most folk who are interested in wild 

 birds must be familiar with them. The 

 Ornithologists' Camp, on Wallis Lake, 

 New South Wales, was close to a tall 

 gum tree which held, in the loftiest 

 boughs, a nest of this species. The 

 curious whistling notes were constantly 

 heard, and often we saw the birds 

 saihng high, over land or sea. 



THE EAGLE-HAWK. 



Though it has been greatly persecuted 

 in many districts, our noblest bird of 

 prey, the Wedge-tailed Eagle {Urocetus 

 audax) is still far from the trail that 

 leads to extinction. In some places, 

 indeed, it is numerous. 



I am a champion of the Eagle-hawk, 

 for though, in drought times especially, 

 it may do some harm among sheep, it 

 performs good service in the war 

 against rabbits. In the nests, and on 

 the earth beneath, you will find 

 remains of bunny. In his Birds of the 

 District of Geelong, Mr. C. F. Belcher 

 records : "I have heard of eagles 

 which had a nest of young in a paddock 

 where two thousand ewes with lambs 

 were depasturing, yet the birds fed 

 themselves and their young upon rab- 

 bits alone." Plenty of similar evidence 

 in favour of the Wedge-tail could be 

 ]iroduced if it came to a trial by jury 

 formed of pastoralists and bird lovers. 



