JOHN WATSON : EAGLES OF THE LAKE DISTRICT. 345 



Haweswater. Clarke further tells us that of this White-tailed 

 species many bred in the mountains every year. The Sea Eagle 

 also nested among the precipitous mountains which surround the 

 head of Ullswatet, and here, as in the case mentioned above, 

 their prey consisted of the Great Lake Trout and lambs. The 

 mountainous environment of Keswick also held Eagles' eyries ; 

 and from Borrowdale, Dr. Law, Bishop of Elphin, received a 

 young bird of the species under notice, which lived in captivity 

 nineteen years ; its tail became white at six years old. 



Seeing that the shepherds of the district lost so many lambs 

 during the breeding season of the Eagles, they almost every year 

 plundered the eyries. Of these, one of the ancient seats was at 

 Eagle Crag in Borrowdale, and the nest here was annually 

 robbed. Upon an appointed day shepherds from the neigh- 

 bouring mountains assembled armed with guns and other 

 weapons, one of them being let down the rocks to a distance of 

 about a hundred and eighty feet. He generally succeeded in 

 bringing away either the eggs or young eagles, and his remunera- 

 tion was regulated accordingly. If eaglets were brought away 

 the money they would bring was considered ample remuneration; 

 but if eggs, every neighbouring shepherd gave to the climber for 

 each egg five shillings. The nest of the white-tailed species is 

 described as being made of twigs twisted together and more than 

 a yard over. Never more than two eaglets nor eggs were dis- 

 covered, and after the young were hatched they were always 

 either conducted or driven from the locality as soon as they 

 were strong on the wing. In spring and summer they feasted 

 upon lambs, sometimes carrying away such as were a month old ; 

 and in winter the water-fowl of the lakes supplied them abun- 

 dantly with food. At Raven Crag, Eagle Crag, and Eskdale 

 were eyries of the White-tailed Eagle as well as at the spots 

 already indicated. A specimen of H. albicilla was seen flying 

 at Low Wood, on the banks of Windermere, in 1822, and a pair 

 nested at Whitbarrow Scaur, a towering limestone escarpment at 

 the head of Morecambe Bay, Westmoreland, in 1849. The 

 species also bred on the precipitous rock which forms the 

 western barrier to the front of Helvellyn, and Willoughby also 

 speaks of an eyrie in Whinfield Park, Westmoreland. A bird of 

 this species was captured on Black Coomb in 1838, and an 

 immature bird occurred on Blundeil Sands about i860. 

 Spotted Eagle (Aquila clanga). Mr. W. A. Durnford examined a 

 specimen of this rare species in 1875. It was picked up dead 

 on Walney Island by a party of fishermen. We have grave doubts 



Nov. 1886. 



