THE GOLDEN EAGLE. 
531 
Foremost amongst Eagles stands the Golden Eagle, 
which is most often found amid the rocky mountains of 
our Fatherland, and of Europe in general. It is a grand, 
powerful bird, with a noble aspect. The plumage is dark, 
with the exception of the whitish gray feathers at the root 
of the tail, and those of the back of the head and neck, 
which are of a golden tinge. The beak is strong, and the 
talons terrible. Strength, courage, power, and a con¬ 
sciousness of the same, is impressed in its very form, 
and is shown in every glance of that great, striking, 
fiery eye. This species is by no means the largest 
amongst Eagles, for several Sea Eagles surpass it; at 
all events, in expanse of wing, which, in its case, rarely 
exceeds seven feet, whereas the length of the bird, as with 
the Sea Eagle, does not exceed three feet. For all this, 
however, the Golden Eagle is the most perfect of the true 
Eagles, all of which are distinguished by having the tarsi 
feathered down to the toes, in contradistinction to other 
members of the family—Sea, Fish, and other Eagles. 
The long wings serve to distinguish them easily from 
the Crested Eagles; while the lanciform feathers of 
the neck separate them from the Roughlegged Buzzards 
(. Archibuteo ), which also have the tarsi feathered to the 
toes. 
The Golden Eagle is found in all parts of Europe, 
Northern Asia, and America, where there are extensive 
forests, though it prefers the mountain to the plain. In 
Switzerland, according to Tschudi, it is exclusively an 
alpine bird, found in all the Highland passes, never 
leaving these hut when scarcity of game forces it to seek 
the Lowlands. At one time this bird was common in all 
parts of Germany, and even now it is occasionally to be 
met with, though forced to retire before the advance of 
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