other Eagle I know has a singular pre- 

 dilection when nest-building for grain 

 sacks, which it uses chiefly in the lin- 

 ing. When I first discovered this Eag- 

 le's nest there was one of these large 

 sacks inside. The heavy storms of the 

 next winter dislodged its nest and in 

 the new one built I was surprised and 

 interested to observe a grain sack." 



To say that the nest of the Golden 

 Eagle is very bulky does not give one a 

 true conception of its size. It is more 

 than bulky, it is extravagantly large. 

 The nests vary from about three feet 

 to seven or eight feet in height and from 

 three feet to eight feet in diameter on 

 top. Sticks two or more inches in diam- 

 eter are often used in its construction, 

 and the nest is nothing more than a 

 platform with a slight depression, for 

 the reception of the eggs. This is lined 

 with straw, moss, grass, leaves or the 

 fur of mammals and the feathers of 

 birds which the Eagle has killed. The 

 nest may be placed on a ledge of some 

 rocky cliff or in the branches of large 

 trees. The latter sites are more frequent 

 in those retired localities where cliffs 

 are not available. The Eagle will, how- 

 ever, at times choose a tree for its home 

 even when a large cliff is near at hand. 

 The female is very watchful of her eggs 

 and is usually a close sitter. The male 

 is attentive and assists his mate in the 

 labor of incubation, and in case of her 

 death "takes full care of the brood." 



Though the Golden Eagle is a trim 

 and handsome bird and exceeding keen 

 of sight, it is shv and at all times on the 

 lookout for intruders. Much has been 

 written, both in poetry and prose, re- 

 garding the fierceness and valor of the 

 Golden Eagles, but all careful observers 

 are agre'^d that it is an arrant coward, 

 and "as soon as the nest is approached 

 leaves the neighborhood and does not 

 return, even when there are young in 

 the nest, until after the foragers have 

 passed out of gun range." Captain 

 Bendire thinks that this apparent cow- 

 ardice may "possibly be due more to 

 utter parental indifference than to actual 

 cowardice, as three of these birds, an 

 adult male caught in a trap, and a pair 

 of young, male and female, taken from 



the nest when about three weeks old 

 and raised, did not seem to be deficient 

 in spirit by any means, and were always 

 ready to attack anything and everything 

 on the slightest provocation." 



Though the Golden Eagle is quite 

 often untamable in confinement, there 

 are very many instances where the birds 

 have become quite gentle and tractable, 

 even showing some attachment for their 

 keeper. Pliny says: "There is a very 

 famous story about an eagle at the city 

 of Sestos. Having been reared by a lit- 

 tle girl, it used to testify its gratitude 

 for her kindness, first by bringing her 

 birds, and in due time various kinds of 

 prey; at last she died, upon which the 

 bird threw itself on the lighted pile and 

 was consumed with her body. In mem- 

 ory of this event, the inhabitants raised 

 upon the spot what they called an he- 

 roic monument, in honor of Jupiter and 

 the damsel, the Eagle being a bird con- 

 secrated to that divinity." 



The Golden Eagle prefers to catch 

 and kill its food, but when living forms 

 are not easily obtainable, it will feed 

 upon offal and carrion. The smaller 

 mammals and game birds such as grouse 

 and water fowl form its principal food. 

 Where the noxious rodents are abundant 

 the Golden Eagle devotes its attention 

 mainly to them and is decidedly bene- 

 ficial. If, however, wild game is not 

 abundant it very often becomes quite de- 

 structive to the young of domestic ani- 

 mals. 



Though the Golden Eagles are swift 

 of flight and have a powerful body, they 

 usually attack prey that is easily ob- 

 tained and usually by dropping down 

 upon it from their perch or from a lofty 

 position while circling in the air. They 

 are capable, however, of capturing agile 

 game. Mr. Robert Ridgway relates the 

 following incident : "We were standing 

 a few yards in the rear of a tent when 

 our attention was arrested by a rushing 

 noise, and upon looking up the slope of 

 the mountain we saw flying down its 

 wooded side with the rapidity of an ar- 

 row a sage-hen pursued by two Eagles. 

 The hen was about twenty yards in ad- 

 vance of her pursuers, exerting herself 

 to the utmost to escape ; her wings, from 



