120 
ORNITHOLOGIST 
[Yol. 13-No. 8 
the country near the springs as being favorable 
places for eagles, and that it used to be a great 
place for California Vultures; also that they 
used to breed a few miles back in the heavy red- 
woods, and much other information about this 
locality. 
I spent the best part of two days in this sec- 
tion and never saw either an eagle or a Califor- 
nia Vulture, but did find the asphaltum springs 
and saw them sending out their sticky tar all 
over the face of the hill. I saw some fossil 
shells in a streak of gravel that were very per- 
fect, and a little farther on a cow that had got 
in a tar hole and was apparently becoming fos- 
silized, as nothing could get to her; even the 
Coyotes and Turkey Buzzards had to stand 
back and look on. 
Crossing the Pajaro river I started for Wat- 
sonville and about three o’clock found a new 
eagle’s nest in a big red-wood. 1 could see the 
old bird on the nest, as the tree was on the side 
of a gulch. 1 went down in the gulch to the 
bottom of the tree and there it stood, five feet 
in diameter and not a limb for thirty feet up. 
I had a mind to give it up as the nest was high 
(94 feet) and the limbs large. On the lower side 
of the tree was another red-wood that stood 
close to this one and whose branches lapped 
across over on to the limbs of the big red- 
wood. 
I cut some pieces of wood, and having cut a 
notch in each tree I placed one of my pieces of 
stick and hammered one end down till it was 
solid. In this way I made a ladder between the 
two trees and got up quite a distance, and then 
by using a tree ladder which I hooked over the 
second limb of the small tree, I had things 
ready for a good start in the morning. I slept 
near the tree and the first thing I heard in the 
morning was the old eagle on her nest calling 
to her mate. 
It was very foggy and as I was in a hurry 
to get the eggs, I went to my last night’s work 
and started up the tree. I climbed up within 
four feet of the old bird and could have caught 
her by the tail with ease, and would have done 
so if the eggs would only have kept whole dur- 
ing the performance, so I spoke to her kindly 
and said “old eagle, good morning.” She 
turned her head, rose up, took one step for- 
ward, spread her wings and sailed away. It 
added one more pleasure to my life to see this 
sight. There was no hurry, no fear, nothing 
but dignity. It said, I only leave because I am 
the weaker, while you are a coward to take ad- 
vantage of me. 
I did feel sorry for the old bird, but I had 
come all the way from the city for what she 
owned and so I had to rob her. 
The eggs, two in number, were deeply marked. 
This nest was made of large sticks and lined 
with red-wood twigs and straw stubble. It was 
very large and ninety-four feet from the ground. 
As it had begun to rain I hurried down and 
started for shelter but could fiud none that 
would enable me to keep dry during the night, 
so I went about two miles to a farm house 
where I got dried out. It was a pleasure to sit 
by a good fire in the best of company after be- 
ing out in a heavy rain nearly' all day. 
I started the next day for the eagle cliff where 
1 took a set of eggs last year. I camped that 
night in a cave high up on a hill in a big rock. 
The next day I climbed up to the old nest and 
found two eggs lightly marked. (The set I 
took from this nest last year were heavily 
marked). 1 saw no eagles near this nest and 
only climbed up to see how it looked, so I was 
somewhat surprised to see two eggs. 
I went to Watsonville and from there to a 
nest from which I took a set of eggs last year. 
I found it had been fixed up but was forsaken. 
I then started for Tres' Pinos, and the first 
night got another soaking which gave me a 
hard cold. 
On my second day out from Watsonville I 
found another nest. I had spread my blanket 
out to dry on a fence and was enjoying my cold 
and the sun when an eagle flew by me, and af- 
ter going nearly half a mile flew into a tree. 
I waited for her to fly out, and after thinking 
she might have a nest in that tree and not see- 
ing her get out, I picked up my glass and gun 
and went to investigate. On getting close to 
the tree 1 discovered the nest and presently the 
bird flew off. This nest was in a white oak 
tree up thirty-seven and a half feet and con- 
tained three eggs not heavily marked. 
This nest was lined with stubble and moss 
and was apparently an old one that had been 
used several seasons. 'The three eggs are more 
elongated than usually is the case with eagle’s 
eggs. 
'The eagle that laid these eggs had a beautiful 
ring tail. I returned to my blankets and 
camped that night in a barn. Next day I went 
to a nest from which I took a set of nearly 
white eggs last year and found the nest unused. 
Crossing the San Benito river I traveled to a 
nest from which I took the first set of eagle's 
eggs I ever collected and found it torn down. 
Going to Tres Pinos I found the town boom- 
ing. Setting out early I went up the Tres Pinos 
river to a nest from which I took a set of eggs 
AND 00 
Aug. 1888.J 
last year, but found it deserted ; the eagles were 
around but I could not find their nest. The 
birds acted strangely and I believe had no nest 
within two miles, but were attached to their old 
home and so they came there to enjoy their 
nooning and have a good time. 
On St. Patrick’s day I went to a nest from 
which I collected a set of eggs last year and 
was pleased to find a nice set this year, and 
very similar to those I took last year. This 
set are quite below the average in size and are 
nicely marked. 
Returning to Tres Pinos I took the train 
home, looking much like the wandering Jew, 
outside. 1 was well pleased with my success, 
however. 
The several sets measure : 
First set: 2§f inches x 2^ 2 ; 3 x 2 3 a 2 . 
Second set : 2ff x 2H: 3 x 2^. 
Third set: 3/, x 2^ ; 3 x 2/ 2 ; 2j$ x 2 3 4,. 
Fourth set : 2ff x 2 A ; 2ff x 2ff. 
Incubation, 1st set, one egg fresh, the other 
advanced ; 2nd set, incubation commenced ; 3rd 
set, incubation advanced; 4t.h set, fresh. 
The dates of eggs taken are as follows : 
1st set March 7. 1888. 2nd set March 9, 1888. 
3rd set March 13, 1888. 4th set March 17, 1888. 
Coloration of the eggs : 
1st set, eggs darkly marked with reddish 
brown and lilac all over, one darker than the 
other. 
2nd set, one egg nearly white, the other light- 
ly marked on small end with reddish brown 
splashes, remainder of eggs sprinkled with dots 
of brown. 
3rd set, eggs light with abundant markings 
of pale lilac and a few spots of brown. 
4th set, eggs lightly marked with lilac and 
brown, one egg more so than the other. 
[Mr. Chalker’s success in finding the eggs of 
this bird has been truly remarkable. 
In 1886 he found one set of their eggs and de- 
scribed their taking in The Ornithologist 
and Oologist for June, 1886, vol XI, p. 85. 
In 1887 he took five sets. (See The Orni- 
thologist and Oologist for June 1887, vol. 
XII, p. 86. 
This year he has taken four sets. This makes 
a total of ten sets. Who has beaten this rec- 
ord?— ,T. P. N.] 
If every subscriber would make an effort to 
add one new name to our subscription list, it 
would result in an immediate increase in the 
amount of reading matter. While the O. & O. 
is a permanent publication, its increase in size 
will depend entirely on the amount of financial 
support it receives. 
O.& o. XIII. Aug. 1888 p. lie ~/3l. 
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