Class II. SEA EAGLE. 207 



ed eagle of Pliny. The interior sides, and the 

 tips of the feathers of the tail, are of a deep 

 brown ; the exterior sides of some are ferrugi- 

 nous, in others blotched with white. The legs 

 are yellow, strong and thick ; and feathered but 

 little below the knees, which is an invariable 

 specific difference between this and our first 

 species. This nakedness of the legs is besides 

 no small convenience to a bird who preys 

 among the waters. The claws are of a deep 

 and shining black, exceedingly large and strong, 

 and hooked into a perfect semicircle ; those of 

 the hind and first toe are an inch and a half 

 long. 



All writers agree, that this eagle feeds princi- Foou. 

 pally on fish, which it takes as they are swim- 

 ming near the surface,* by darting itself down 

 on them ; not by diving or swimming, as several 

 authors have invented, who furnish it for that 

 purpose with one webbed foot to swim with, and 

 another divided foot to take its prey with. Pliny, 

 with his usual elegance, describes the manner 

 of its fishing. Superest haliceetos, clarissima 



* Martin, speaking of what he calls the great eagles in the 

 western isles, says, that they fasten their talons in the back of the 

 fish, commonly of salmon, which are often above water, or on 

 the surface. Those of Greenland will even take a young seal out 

 of the water. 



