io6 Major Horsbrugh,


in it, and was woven together almost as tightly as an English

Magpie’s nest.


When the young are able to get their own living, the

parents follow the custom of other big Raptores, and drive them

off to find beats of their own.


The Secretary, as a rule, is entirely terrestrial, and must

cover many miles each day getting its food. They can, however

fly well, and I have occasionally seen them high in the sky,

soaring about like auy eagle or vulture. It is quite a common

sight to see a pair striding along with their easy stately walk,

each bird looking like an old gentleman in short black knicker¬

bockers with his hands behind his back under his coat-tails.

Every now and then one will give a quick stamp on the ground

and slowly sit down on the whole length of the tarsi and pick up

a locust, beetle, or other small game. A mouse or lizard may

take cover in a tiny cactus or thorn clump, but he is doomed if

the quick eye of the great bird has seen him. Stalking swiftly

up he gives one side of the clump a sharp smack with his rattling

wing, bounding like lightning to the other side and bringing his

unerring foot on his game as it bolts.


Secretaries have enormous appetities. Some young ones I

reared would eat as many as nine doves (Turinr capicola or

senegalensis) each every day. These doves used to haunt the

Government Poultry Farm in Potchefstroom in hundreds and

devour the chicken food, and were shot by the manager and

thrown away till I put in a claim for them.


Secretaries are great egg-eaters. I came on the scene one

afternoon as one of my tame birds was finishing off a clutch of

nine guinea-fowl eggs he had discovered in the lucerne patch ; a

child, who was with me, remarked that it was like putting pennies

into a money-box as you could hear them clink as they went

down. No doubt in the wild state they are terrible foes to all

ground-breeding birds.


On account of their great activity and vast appetites they

require a big tract of country as a hunting-ground. I know of

various eyries that were occupied year after year in the Transvaal,

but none was within ten miles of another one.



