Page:Ornithological biography, or an account of the habits of the birds of the United States of America, vol 2.djvu/504

468 enced whilst in danger, that ere three days had elapsed his hair became quite grey.

Falgo Cheysaetos and F. fulvus, Linn. Syst. Nat. voL i. p. 125. — Lath. Ind. Ornith. vol. i. p. 10.

Falco fulvus, Ch, Bonaparte, Synops. of Birds of the United States, p. 25.

AauiLA Cheysaetos, Swains.axiA. Richards. Fauna Bor. Amer. vol. ii. p. 12.

Ring-tailed Eagle, F. fulvus, Wils. Anier. Ornith. vol. vii. p. 13. pi. 55. fig. 1. Young.

RoTAL or Golden Eagle, Nuttall, Manual, part i. p. 62.

Adult Female. Plate CLXXXI.

Bill shortish, deep, compressed, strong, cerate at the base ; upper man- dible with the dorsal outline nearly straight and sloping at the base, from the margin of the cere to the end curved so as to form the fourth of a circle, the sides sloping and slightly convex, the edges sharp, nearly straight, with a slight convexity and a shallow sinus close to the strong subtrigonal tip, which is concave or channelled beneath ; lower mandible convex on its dorsal outline, the sides convex, the edges sharp and in- flected, the tip obliquely truncate. Nostrils in the fore part of the cere, lateral, oblique, oval, open, with a process at their anterior margin. Head of moderate size, neck short, body full. Legs of ordinary length ; the tibia proportionally long ; the tarsus short, rounded, robust, feathered to the toes, which are rather short, very strong, united at the base by a short web, marginate, covered above with series of angular scales, and towards the end with large broad scutella, of which there are four on the hind toe, three on the next, four on the middle toe, and three on the outer ; the first and second toes are about equal, the hind one stronger, the middle toe longest, the outer shortest and smallest ; claws long, curved, rounded, flat beneath, middle claw with a deep groove and an edige on the inner side.

Plumage compact, imbricated, glossy ; feathers of the head and neck narrow and pointed, of the back and breast broader, but still pointed. Space between the bill and eye covered with small bristle-pointed feathers disposed in a radiating manner ; both eyelids ciliated ; a bare projecting space over the eye. Wings long; the fourth quill longest, the third almost equal, the second considerably shorter, the first short; the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth, abruptly cut out on the inner webs; the