10 FALCONID.E. 



feathers that clothe the head and neck, by the dark barred 

 tail, and by the general shade of its plumage. 



In young specimens that have not acquired those distin- 

 guishing characters, it is less easy to detect the difference 

 between them. Some characters are, however, permanent, 

 and are sufficient, at all ages, to distinguish the species at 

 present under consideration from the White-tailed or Sea 

 Eagle, namely, the feet, which in the Golden Eagle are 

 reticulated, except the last phalanx of each toe, which bears 

 three well-defined scales ; while on the contrary, the toes of 

 the White-tailed species are scutellated through the greater 

 part of their length. The tarsi of the Golden Eagle are also 

 covered with feathers ; those of the White-tailed are naked 

 some space above the foot ; and the tail of the present 

 species is in all stages longer than the wings. 



In a state of immaturity the Golden Eagle differs in 

 many particulars of its plumage from the adult ; the feathers 

 on the inside of the thighs, the tarsi, and under tail-coverts 

 being white : the same colour prevails also upon the tail, 

 which is white for two-thirds of its length, the third occu- 

 pying the tips of the feathers being brown. In this state of 

 plumage it is generally known as the Ring-tailed Eagle. As 

 the bird approaches maturity the brown colour prevails more 

 and more, encroaching upon the white portion, of which, in 

 a state of perfect maturity, very little remains. Three or 

 four years usually elapse before the adult plumage is entirely 

 completed : the quill-feathers of the wings and tail are the 

 last that attain maturity. The colours of the cere, bill, and 

 feet are nearly the same in young as in adult individuals, 

 and the colour of the eye only varies from a darker to a 

 lighter and more golden tint. 



The Golden Eagle is believed to be untameable in dispo- 

 sition. Its cry is a double note uttered many times in suc- 

 cession, and if not in itself clear and sonorous, is rendered so, 

 when heard in the wild regions it inhabits, by the softening 



