FIFTH DAY. 77 
bird; but the forester entreated me to fire at it, and I 
unfortunately followed his advice. We had, however, mis- 
calculated the distance; and the eagle flew off, perfectly 
uninjured. Somewhat depressed by this failure, I crept 
under the nest, which was placed on the middle branches of 
a young oak thickly entwined with ivy, and was remarkably 
small compared with the size of the bird. 
In a few moments I saw the pair of Hagles circling aloft, 
playfully pursued by some Black Kites and Hooded Crows. 
Their beautiful plumage was brilliantly relieved against the 
sky, and I had a good opportunity of watching their flight, 
which was unquestionably not the easy gliding motion which 
characterizes all the eagles, but an unmistakable buzzard- 
like flapping of the wings, so often repeated that this so- 
called eagle ought not to be allowed to retain the honourable 
but undeserved position assigned to it by the earlier natu- 
ralists. Some plucky Hooded Crows swooped at the circling 
couple in the most impertinent way ; and the female, anxious 
about her brood, shot down to the wood like an arrow. I 
never saw a bird of prey alight on its nest in such a singular 
manner; for, instead of first settling on the edge of the 
structure, the Short-toed Eagle clung outside it like a 
Swift, and remained some seconds in that position. 
I am ashamed at having to confess that my ornithological 
zeal entirely vanished at this moment, and, overpowered by 
my sporting ardour, I fired, instead of waiting for the further 
development of this interesting observation. Shot dead, the 
beautiful bird fell to the ground ; and, to my great delight, 
I found that I had killed an old and very finely plumaged 
female. A broad head like an owl, large bright yellow 
eyes, a snow-white breast, lengthy powerful blue-grey legs 
covered with a snake-like skin, long broad wings, and a 
wide, moderately sized tail are the principal characteristics 
of the Short-toed Eagle. 
In my humble opinion, this bird does not deserve its 
