TRAVELS IN THE CALIFORNIA S. 
389 
the woody districts of California, on the tops of the highest 
trees, in the most inaccessible parts of the mountain valleys-. 
It is very wary and difficult of approach, except while on its 
nest, or after a meal, when its whole nature seems to be 
changed, and it is so overcome by the inordinate indulgence 
of its appetite, that it may be knocked on the head with a 
stick. Their food is carrion, and, in common with others of 
the vultures, the carcase of a dead horse or other animal be¬ 
comes their gathering-place. The great vulture measures, 
when full grown and in perfect plumage, about four feet 
eight inches in length, from the point of the beak to the end 
of the tail, and from nine feet six inches to ten feet from tip 
to tip of the wings. The color is an uniform brownish black; 
the bill, and skin of the head and legs, yellow. The quill 
feathers are much esteemed by the hunters and boatmen for 
making tubes to their pipes. 
Cathartes aura, The Turkey Buzzard, so common in the 
Southern States, is rather a rare bird in California. Its habits 
are well known. As a scavenger it is of great benefit to the 
inhabitants of the places which it frequents. A dead hog or 
sheep lies only long enough to emit the odor so grateful to 
the nostrils of this filthy bird, before it is devoured utterly out 
of sight. As far as the observations of the author have ex¬ 
tended, it is in California a bird of passage, being only found 
there in the autumn and winter. 
Cathartes atratus, The Black Vulture, is quite common 
in almost every part of the country west of the Rocky Moun¬ 
tains. Its habits and general appearance are quite similar to 
those of the last mentioned species. 
Aquila Clirysaetos , The Golden Eagle, is a noble bird, and 
is considered by the Indians as well as the civilized nations, 
an emblem of power and bravery. Its plumes are used by 
the natives as ornaments, and are attached to their pipes or 
calumets, from which circumstance it is called the Calumet 
eagle. This species is found on the coast, and in most sections 
of the woody and mountainous parts of California. It feeds 
