The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1873-05-17
THE EAGLES.
From the american Sportsman.

The eagle has ever been called the king
of birds, and the ancients regarded it as
the symbol of victory, and bore one with
expanded wings upon their standards
From the eagles powers of flight, "capa-
BILE of outstripping even the temptests
themselves" it was considered by the
ancients as the bird of Jove and messenger
of the gods.
The wonderful keenness and power of its
eye, was also the theme of song among the
Greeks and Romans. Homer speaks of
Menelaus, as.
"The field exploring with an eye,
Keen as the eagle's-keenest eye of all,
That wing the air, whom, though he soar
The leveret's 'capes not, hid in thicksst
shades,
But down he sweeps, and at stroke she
dies"
1t was in the form of an eagle, that Jove
carried off Ganymede, when he came to
the earth to seek another cup-bearer to
supply the place of Hebe. But truce to
mythology. Having in my possession a
couple of eagles of different species,
thought perhaps few notes concerning
their captivity and general characteristics,
might be Of some interest to readers of
the Sportsman. One is a golden Eagle,
(Aquila Canadensis,) and the other bald
eagle, (Haliatus Leucocephalus,) both very
large and handsome birds.
The golden eagle is of purplish brown
on its body and wings; in some places
nearly clear black; tail black; head and
neck behind covered with long pointed
feathers of beautiful golden brown, from
which the bird derives its name. The
plumage of the bald eagle is of brownish
black on its body and wings; head and
neck Of pure white, also eagle belongs to
the family of true eagles, which differ from
the fishing or sea eagles, in having the
tarsi thickly feathered to the toes. The
ring tailed eagle of Wilson, and some OF
the earlier ornithologists, is the young Of
the golden eagle.
| 1t differs from the mature specimen in
the color of its plumage, which is of a
| lighter and duller brown; also in the mark
ings of the tail, which is nearly all of a
dirty or creamy white, growing dark with
age, being in the old bird quite black. The
golden eagle inhabits tho whole of North
America, dwelling principally in the more
mountainous and desolate regions; build
ing it's nest upon almost inaccessible cliffs,
and preying on whater the country affords,
as fawns, turkeys, grouse, hares, &c.
Although it is not so swift of wing al
some of the hawks, or even the white.
headed eagle, yet it excels all birds in the
brilliancy of its eye, and its motions are
exceedingly beautiful and graceful while,
"Sailing with supreme domain,
Through the azure depths of air."
The bald eagle inhabits the whole OF
temperate North America, nesting upon
trees, and living chiefly in the vicinity Of
the sea, and the large lakes and rivers
where it is the terror of the wild fowl, and
tyrant of the fish hawk.
The Washington eagle Of Audubon, also
the gray eagle Of Nuttall and others, are
now considered as immature specimens OF
the bald eagle; and the dimensions of Au-
dubon's bird, ten feet, two inches, is tpy-
ographical error, as no bird has since been
discovered of such immense proportions.
Owing to the great difference of plum
age, the earlier ornithologists regarded the
young and old of many birds of prey, as
two distinct species. We have q good
example of this in the white-headed eagle,
the young of which is a greyish brown on
wings, body, head, neck, and tail; with
dark brown iris, legs, and beak. The i'm
mature birds begin to change about the
third or fourth year, when in captivity,
not till the fifth or sixth year, when the
head, neck, and tail, turn white; the beak,
and legs yellow, and the iris pale straw
color.
Mine have been captured about five
years, and at first were very wild. They