THE EAGLES 73 



poised, barking, on his wings ; but in a moment fell pre- 

 cipitate, as their manner is, straight down a thousand feet 

 to the sea." 



It was indeed Tennyson's word-picture seen in real life. 



Everybody who has seen an Eagle on the wing has 

 seen a wonderful sight, especially if the bird be one of the 

 grander members of the family, such as the Golden Eagle. 

 Dr. Bowdler Sharpe says : " I have seen nothing finer than 

 the flight of the Eagles in the Himalayas, soaring round 

 and round, high in the air, without any apparent motion 

 of the wings, the ends of which are slightly upturned in 

 soaring. ... It is when the Golden Eagle is on the wing 

 that we can understand why its majestic movements 

 inspired the idea that it was 'the King of Birds.' " 



The GOLDEN EAGLE is the species that we hear 

 most about in the British Isles. For not only is he one of 

 the few members of his tribe who are fairly frequent 

 visitors here, but in certain places he may still be found as 

 a resident, and a carefully protected one. 



There is something rather romantic about his name, 

 and plenty of people talk about the Golden Eagle, who 

 know the name of no other. As a matter of fact, unless 

 the sun is shining very brightly on his feathers, the name 

 does not seem very well deserved. Indeed, some of his 

 number who nest in the islands on the west coast of 

 Scotland, and are darker than those found on the main- 

 land, are given the name of "iolair dhubh," i.e. the Black 

 Eagle. 



The colour of the plumage is brown — often richly dark 

 on most parts of the body, but lightening and lirightening 

 on the head and neck into a rich golden red, which 

 quickly catches a sun-gleam. Grey-brown feathers clothe 

 the legs and sides of the thighs. The tail is usually a 



