some Notes on Tavie Serpent Eagles.



155



They were never confined in any cage or aviary, having the

most absolute freedom in every way, but after they were big enough

to get about by themselves they selected a perch in my fowl house

where they nightly roosted in perfect amity with a large assortment of

fowls, guinea-fowls, ducks, etc. In a state of nature, these beautiful

eagles roost at night on very lofty trees, almost invariably selecting

one which has very dense foliage amongst which they sit and, not as

some other eagles do, on a lofty bare branch. My birds, however,

although there was not the slightest restriction placed upon them,

never showed any inclination to roost on high trees and when as

occasionally happened in my absence, they were shut out of the fowl

house, they roosted on one of the lower boughs of some pine trees

in my garden.


They took a remakably long time to learn to feed themselves

and before they had got as far as picking up their food from the

ground were in the habit of snatching it from one another. This the

female bird, who was very much larger than the male, soon ceased to

tolerate, so that the male eagle then began to hunt around for and

pick up scraps of meat for himself, after which fired with his example,

the female also began to feed herself. It was weeks, however, before

they relinquished all idea of being fed, and whenever food was

brought them they would throw themselves back on their haunches

and demand to have it given them with all the energy and noise

they had displayed as babies.


They were, I think, quite the most tame birds I have ever

kept, and their kindly confiding ways were not displayed towards me

alone but equally so to the large circle of pets which at that time

shared my menage. Amongst other animals were four bears, three

of whom were most estimable characters, but the fourth was quite

the reverse and the two eagles soon learnt that whilst they could

take any liberties they liked with the former it was advisable to give

the latter a wide berth. For a short time the bad-tempered bear made

life very hard for them, for although these eagles in a state of nature

seldom visit the ground, these particular birds were very fond of

walking about both in the verandah and also in the garden round

about the house. This procedure the bear resented for some reason

best known to himself and he was constantly making rushes at them,



