146 POPULAR OFFICIAL GUIDE. 



Bald Eagle, (Haliaetus Icucocephalus). — The appearance 

 of the adult Bald Eagle, our National emblem, with its con- 

 spicuous white head and tail, is familiar to all ; but the im- 

 mature birds, as shown by several of the specimens, lack the 

 white in their plumage. These birds are found usually near 

 water, and their food is chiefly fish. These they sometimes 

 catch for themselves, but if ospreys are found in the vicinity, 

 they are watched by the eagles, and often robbed of their 

 hard-earned prey. 



Perhaps the fiercest among all the hawks is the White 

 Gyrfalcon, (Falco islandus). A native of the far north, it 

 descends to a more equable clime only when forced to do 

 so by scarcity of food. It is so swift of wing that it is able 

 to capture a duck in full flight. 



Sea snakes form the rather unusual food of the White- 

 Breasted Sea Eagle, (Haliaetus leucogaster), of the East 

 Indies, while the strikingly-colored Vulturine Sea Eagle, 

 (Gypohierax angolensis), a native of Africa, feeds on fish, 

 crabs, and the fruit of the oil palm. 



THE WILD TURKEY ENCLOSURE, No. 33. 



At the northern end of Squirrel Ridge, where the Alli- 

 gator Walk intersects the Rodent Walk, an ideal quarter of 

 an acre, of oak and hickory trees, underbrush, and bare rock, 

 has been dedicated to the king of game birds. 



The Wild Turkey, (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris), is a 

 bird of magnificent size and presence, and the splendid me- 

 tallic luster of his plumage — a mixture of burnished bronze 

 copper, lapis lazuli, and fire opal iridescence — backed up 

 by a great bulk of savory flesh, all combine to make this the 

 finest game bird on earth. It was once fairly abundant 

 throughout the eastern United States, and still is found in 

 Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, Virginia and other southern 

 states as far west as Texas. Three other species of Melea- 

 gris are now recognized — one in Florida, one in southern 

 Texas and northeastern Mexico, and the fourth in Mexico, 

 extending to western Texas and Arizona. 



THE LARGE BIRD-HOUSE, No. 7. 



On the northwest quarter of Baird Court stands the larg- 

 est and the most generously equipped home for perching 

 birds now in existence. This is not an unnecessary boast, 



