FALCON. 45 



* EUROPEAN. 

 1.— BALD EAGLE. 



Falco leucocephalus, Lid. Orn. i. 1 1, Lin. i. 124. Gm. Lin. i. 255. Briss. i. 422. Id. 



8v-o. i. 122. GerJH. 1. t. S. S/tcmt's Zoo/, vii. 78. Amer.Orn.w. ^\.ZQ. Jd.ix. p. 



129. Tem. Man. d-Qm. p. 11 /(/. Ed. 2. p. 52. 

 Falco pygargus, Daiid. ii. 62. 



Fischadler, Beckst. Dents, ii. 222. taf. ix. A'aturf. 8. s. 46. 

 Le Pygargue, jBm/. i. 99. PL enl. 411. 

 White headed Eagle, Arct. Zool. ii. No. 89. 

 Bald Eagle, Ge/i. Si/n. i. 29. /J. 5h/j. p. 9. Bartr. Trav. 286. 



THE length of this bird is more than three feet; breadth in 

 proportion; weight 9 pounds; bill and cere yellow; irides white; head, 

 neck, and tail, white ; the rest of the body dark brown ; the upper 

 half of the shins covered with feathers ; the rest and the toes bare and 

 yellow; claws black. Both sexes much alike. 



Inhabits North America, preying both on flesh and fish, but 

 does not procure the latter for itself; for sitting in a convenient spot, 

 it watches the diving of the Osprey into the water, and as soon the 

 latter has secured a fish, the Bald Eagle follows close after, and the 

 Osprey, through fear, drops his prey, which the Eagle will frequently 

 seize before it reaches the ground; but in Georgia it sometimes 

 frequents ponds, catching both ducks and geese, and fish, destroying 

 also young lambs and pigs. The young are brown instead of 

 white-headed, and, in this state, called the Grey Eagle. 



I leani from Mr. Hutchins, that it is called, at Hudson's Bay, 

 Wapaw-Estequan-Mickesue, that it comes in May, and builds on 

 the highest trees, fonning a nest of sticks and grass, tufts of grass 

 and other rubbish, of a large size ; and has generally two young ; often 

 made in a very tall tree, such as a pine or cypress, continuing the 

 samC; season after season, for a long time; but we believe that many, ii 



