372 
Mr. W. H. Simpson's Fortnight 
The circumstances attending the discovery of the nests of Aq. 
imperialis and Falco sacer have been already narrated ( c Ibis/ 
vol. ii. p.375). In addition to the Raptorial birds previously 
mentioned as occurring here, a single specimen of a bird, be¬ 
lieved to have been Bonelli's Eagle ( Aquila bonellii), was ob¬ 
served upon a low cliff overlooking one of the small lakes. These 
low cliffs which flank the lateral valleys, and occasionally the 
stream of the Danube itself on the Bulgarian shore, are favourite 
places for the larger birds of prey. It was supposed that the 
Cinereous Vulture ( Vultur monachus) might be found breeding 
here, as the bird is not at all uncommon, especially during the 
summer. No nest of this species was, however, discovered, though 
we found one or two of the Griffon (Gyps fulvus). As an instance 
of the closeness of this bird's sitting, I may mention that, on my 
being lowered by means of a rope to a nest in a cliff overhang¬ 
ing the Danube, the old bird was actually touched by my foot 
before she would move. The nest contained a young one lately 
hatched, which was of course left. This sudden popping out of 
the huge Griffon so upset my equilibrium that I should certainly 
have fallen into the river if not upheld by the cord. The 
Egyptian Neophron (Neophronpercnopterus) also frequents these 
cliffs: fresh eggs were to be had towards the end of April. 
Birds of prey are not the sole tenants of these rocks. The 
Black Stork (Ciconia nigra) also breeds here; at least we disco¬ 
vered one nest in a very peculiar position for a bird which has 
the reputation of breeding in the densest thickets of impervious 
morasses. The cliff in this case was about sixty feet high, the strata 
being horizontal or nearly so. In the face of the upper ledge 
there had been at some time, artificially excavated in the soft stone, 
a chamber having a sort of antechamber, which communicated 
by means of a couple of steps with a crack in the rock. This 
crack was not difficult to reach from the top when the exact path 
was once known. The chamber itself had much the appearance 
of a hermit's cell; but as the aperture in the face of the cliff was 
the entire width of one side, the apartment was airy and cheer¬ 
ful, commanding a fine view of the valley below. Altogether it 
was a place where one could have had no objection to put up 
for a few days in case of necessity. Here it was that a pair of 
