206 SEA EAGLE. Class II. 



cat's resistance brought both animals to the 

 ground, when Barlow took them up ; and after- 

 wards caused the event to be engraved in the 

 thirty-sixth plate of his collection of prints. 

 Turner says, that in his days, it was too well 

 known in England, for it made horrible destruc- 

 tion among the fish; he adds, the fishermen 

 were fond of anointing their baits with the fat 

 of this bird, imagining that it had a peculiar 

 alluring quality : they were superstitious enough 

 to believe that whenever the sea eag-le hovered 

 over a piece of water, the fish, (as if charmed) 

 would rise to the surface with their bellies up- 

 wards, and in that manner present themselves 

 to him. No writer since Clusius has described 

 the sea eagle : though no uncommon species, it 

 seems at present to be but little known, being 

 generally confounded with the golden eagle, to 

 which it bears some resemblance. 

 Descrip- The color of the head, neck and body, are the 

 same with the latter, but much lighter, the tawny 

 part in this predominating ; in size it is far su- 

 perior, the extent of wings in some being nine 

 or ten feet. The bill is larger, more hooked, 

 and more arched; underneath grow several 

 short, but strong hairs or bristles, forming a sort 

 of beard. This gave occasion to some writers 

 to suppose it to be the aquila barbata or beard- 



TION. 



