64 BIRD OF WASHINGTON. 



ton, that by a superficial observer they might be confounded, at least 

 were he to view them separately. 



The White-tailed or Cinereous Eagle [Falco Albicilla of Linn^us), 

 has, when full grown, the bill and iris yellow, the general colour of the 

 upper parts pale greyish-brown, passing into wood-brown, the belly and 

 thighs chocolate-brown, some of the upper tail-coverts, and the whole of 

 the tail, white. In this state, it is sufficiently different from our bird, at 

 least in colouring, but the young has a different appearance. In the 

 bird just fuUy fledged, the bill is deep brown, tinged with blue, its 

 base and the cere greenish-yellow ; the iris dark brown ; the feet gamboge- 

 yellow ; the head deep brown, the bases of all the feathers of the body 

 wliite ; on the hind neck the whole feathers white, excepting the ends 

 which are deep brown ; the upper and middle back light brown, the tips 

 umber ; the lower back white, with umber tips ; the tail greyish at its ori- 

 gin, deep brown, with an irregular brownish -white patch along the inner 

 webs, the fore-neck and upper breast brownish- white, spotted with umber, 

 the tips being of the latter colour ; the belly pale brown, spotted with 

 umber ; the thighs brown ; the under tail-coverts whitish, tipped with 

 deep brown. In this state, and until nearly full grown, it has been de- 

 scribed as a distinct species, under the name of Sea Eagle or Osprey 

 (Falco Ossifragus, Linn.). 



The principal changes which take place in regard to colovir as the 

 bird advances, are these : the bill first becomes bluish-black, and ulti- 

 mately yellow, the cere becomes brighter, the iris assumes more of yellow, 

 the white at the base of the plumage gradually disappears, the tail be- 

 comes lighter, the general colour of the plumage at first darker, but ulti- 

 mately paler. At the age of two years, the only period when the bird 

 mucb resembles ours, it is as follows : — and here I shall make the descrip- 

 tion correspond in its arrangement with that of the Bird of Washington, 

 that the two may be more satisfactorily compared. 



The bill corresponds with that of our bird, only that it is not so 

 deep, and proportionally more elongated. The other circumstances men- 

 tioned in the first paragraph of the description of the Bird of Washing- 

 ton are the same in the Sea Easle. 



Plumage compact, imbricated, glossy ; feathers of the head, neck and 

 breast, narrow and pointed ; of the back, breast and belly, ovate, distinct, 

 acute ; the wing-coverts ovate and pointed. Space between the beak and 

 eye barish, being sparsely covered with bristly feathers. Eyebrow pro- 



1 



