60 



THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



'% 



Photograph hy William L. and Irene Finley 

 NEARLY EIGHT WEEKS OED AND HARDLY HANDSOME 



A young California condor still in the downy stage, whose feet seem to be growing faster 



than the rest of him. 



there are current stories of the predatory 

 attacks of these birds on children. 



]^ossibIy in primitive times, if small 

 babies were left exposed, an eagle might 

 have attacked them, just as it would a kid 

 or a lamb under the same circumstances ; 

 but such a happening in the present day 

 would be quite improbable. 



In the Philippine Islands the powerful 

 monkey-eating eagle (Pithccophaga jcf- 

 fcryi), a bird weighing from i6 to 20 

 ])ounds, is believed by the natives to attack 

 men. R. C. McGregor was told of an 

 instance where one of these birds, in pro- 

 tecting its nest, killed a Negrito; but he 

 did not place entire credence in the stor}^, 

 as it came to him through hearsay. 



When their nests are disturbed, falcons 

 and other hawks swoop fiercely at the 

 heads of intruders, and on occasion may 

 actually strike a climber and cut him with 

 their claws. But such attacks are usually 

 more threatening than serious, though they 

 are executed with a vicious dash that 

 might well frighten the timorous. 



Among the Indians of North America 

 is a widespread belief in a "thunder bird" 



of huge size. The legend may be based on 

 former wide distribution of the California 

 condor, or possibly on the extinct condor 

 known as Tcratoniis incrriajiii, a huge bird 

 whose bones are found in Ice Age fossil 

 deposits in California and Florida. 



SOME HAWKS WHISTLE, CHATTER, AND 

 LAUGH 



The voice of most hawks is a harsh 

 sound that in many instances is as wild in 

 tone as the fierce birds themselves. Ut- 

 tered as they float on broad pinions high 

 in air, the weird cadences of their screams 

 seem fitting and appropriate to the spread- 

 ing landscapes they survey. Some species 

 utter piercing wdtistles, others chattering 

 calls. In sonie the notes are Cjuite pleas- 

 ing, though none possesses what might be 

 termed a song. The adult turkey vulture 

 is entirely silent except for a hiss, though 

 the young are vociferous. 



The strangest notes that I have heard 

 from birds of this group have come from 

 the handsome laughing falcons (Herpc- 

 lotliercs cachiinmiis) of the American 

 Tropics. My first experience with these 



