200 
was not counted, but must have represented several hundred animals, yet 
they were but the pieces that happened to fall just in this particular direc- 
tion from the nest. A conservative estimate of the requirements of a 
family of these large Hawks is surprising in its total. Two adults, from 
spring arrival to the birth of young, three months, consume not less than a 
gopher a day, 90 in all. After the young are out, four in the brood, and for 
two months at least, the family requirement can not average less than three 
gophers a day, or 180. Thereafter for one month, the six practically adult, 
though four are still growing, probably will require one gopher each a 
day, or 180 more. A single gopher, under favourable circumstances, 
destroys at least one bushel of wheat. Supposing that one-tenth of this 
can be charged against the average gopher, we still have thirty-five bushels 
of wheat as the value of this one family of large Hawks for a single season. 
This can be translated into dollars and cents by multiplying by the current 
price of wheat, and makes a sum that is well worth considering. 
With the reduction of coyotes, foxes, and other natural enemies of 
Gophers on the prairies, these large Buzzard Hawks, the Red-tail, Swain- 
son's, and Rough-legs, should be encouraged in every way to take their 
places. 
Eagles 
The Eagles are our largest Birds of Prey. Size alone will differentiate 
them from the Hawks. Any bird of prey over 30 inches long, or 6 feet in 
extent, is an Eagle. They are typically large Buzzards, and have a similar 
outline in flight, but with a longer though equally round-tipped wing, and 
the tail broad but not so long (Figure 201 — 2). A very distinctive 
character of the Eagles in life is the shape of the head and bill. The bill is 
nearly as long as the head itself and shows a particularly massive and 
characteristic appearance that can be recognized as eagle-like at a consider- 
able distance. We have only two species in Canada. 
349. Golden Eagle. Aquila chrysaetos. L, 30. A large, dark brown Eagle, the 
hindneck suffused with an ochraceous cast suggesting the name “Golden”, and the basal 
half of tail dark, with indistinct broken bars 
or speckles of greyish. Tarsus feathered to 
the base of toes. 
Distinction a. In all plumages very similar 
to the juvenile Bald Eagle, but quite different 
from the adult. The mature Golden is all 
black or very dark brown, with hindneck 
dull ochre. The end of the tail is dark, but 
beneath the coverts at the base it is 
obscurely mottled or barred. The juvenile 
is similar, but the basal half of the tail is 
largely, or entirely, white. The most dis- 
tinctive feature for this species, however, is 
the tarsus; it is feathered to the base (Figure 222) of the toes in all plumages, instead of 
being bare as in the Bald (See Figure 225). 
Field Marks. Recognizable as an Eagle by its large size; to be confused only with 
the juvenile Bald Eagle. The juvenile Golden shows as a black bird with a prominent 
white spot at the base of the primaries, visible on both upper and lower surfaces in flight. 
The tail is largely white with a broad black border (Figure 223). The adult is all evenly 
black below (Figure 224). The young Bald Eagle has considerable grey on the under- 
wing surface, becoming more pronounced towards the body, and the tail is either all dark 
or gradually lightens from the tip without showing a pronounced terminal band. ( See 
Figures 226, 227). 
Nesting. Nests of sticks on ledges of cliffs, occasionally in trees. 
Figure 222 
Feathered tarsus of Golden Eagle; 
scale, J. 
