Page:Condor3(3).djvu/3

 May, x9ot I THE, CONDOR 6I sailed over me and slowly up the hill, over the nest, and on out of sight. I followed with camera, climbers etc., immediately. After maneuvering up and down hill for the best site to plant the camera, the spot was selected. With the sky for a back-ground I de- termined to have a fine picture of the eagle leaving her nest. Setting the shutter for t-25ofa second, I threw a rock and shouted at the bird on the nest, and waited expectantly. Though I had been in plain sight looking at her with the glasses while she laid low in the nest watching me, she seemed not to be frightened but stood up in the nest, silhouetted against the sky, shook herself thoroughly. and sailed out across the canyon. The bulb was pressed and on developing the plate that evening no eagle was to be seen. This was disap- pointing after such' an excellent chance, but we live and learn. On the t2th of March a visit was made to a nest built last year in which one egg was hatched. As I was reasonably sure of a set of eggs, and as the nest was but a mile or so from the wagon road, the start was made with both cameras, a 4x5 'Midget' and a 5x 7 'Premo'. I had had made especially for this event two iron braces to nail onto the limbs, with a slot 'for the camera screw, and had intended to take a pic- ture of myself up the tree taking a pic- ture of a set of eagle's eggs in situ. This would undoubtedly have been in- teresting bt here again my plans balked. One of the camera screws had been left at home in the pocket of an old pair of pants. Therefore but one camera could be used at a time. The result of the pic- ture is seen in Plate I. About an hour was spent in the tree climbing up and down to pull aside limbs and twigs that obscured a full view of the eggs. Then it was necessary to take the camera down and climb back after the eggs. As it was only one o'clock I hied me over the hills and far away to another pair of birds which had caused me much hard climbing in a rough canyon to find their nest. Two years ago as I lay resting, after losing sight of two pairs of birds, the female suddenly swooped by me up to her nest. Search as I would no nest was found. Last year one day about noon found me on the ridge high above an eagle slowly circ- ling about. As the view was perfectly open I watched him and soon saw be- low him the female flying up the can- yon from around a little point. This continned my suspicions and a long, close search revealed finally an old dilapidated nest in an oak tree. After looking at it a few minutes, as a forlorn hope I climbed to it and was greatly astonished to find two eagles' eggs. This year I headed for the same nest, but before reachinK it located a new nest in a pine tree one-quarter of a mile above it. Th!s.contained but one egg, slightly incubated. After gazing at it long and earnestly it was placed in my basket, as the possibility of getting another was not worth the tinhe and hard work of going for it. Slipping and sliding thro' sage brush, scrubby trees hnd poison oak the spot was finally selected as the best available from which the pictur e 'in plate II was taken. This shoWS :'fairly well the nature of the countr?iWl{%:tnos of my nests are found, though it Would' be shown better were the two small pines not so much to the front:. On my re- turn journey a treeco'ntainihE::wonests, from each of which I had taken eggs in former seasons, was passed. They were both deserted but the birds were seen sailing about their usual haunts. Bright and early the next morning my way led for miles up and down ridges and canyons with cameras loaded with plates and rosy an- ticipations of two more sets awaiting me. The first nest was reached about 2 o'clock. This was in an old pine 80 feet up, where two birds were hatched last year. That fact, in my estimation, augured favorably for this year. With camera over my shoulder, up I climbed