Page:The Natural History of Ireland vol1.djvu/50

 ber, 1837, when a man on turning suddenly round a rock, came close upon one, and attacking it on the instant with his walking- stick, so disabled the bird as to bear it off in triumph.

''Habits in captivity. Kinds of food preferred, &c.'' — The Rev. Thomas Knox of Toomavara, (Tipperary), remarked in a letter dated November 22, 1837, with reference to two young sea eagles, birds of that year, which he had in captivity, that he attributed their clean healthy state in a great measure to " having placed in their cage, which is very large, a tank of water in which they have full room to wash themselves. They seldom miss a day without doing so, and the time preferred is immediately after eating : even in cold weather, they seem to enjoy the ablution."* Their food is varied as much as possible ; raw beef, liver, eels now and then, rooks, small birds, and all the dead rats that can be got ; the last are preferred to anything else. They sometimes swallow small birds whole, and the feathers are afterwards ejected in castings about the size of a hen's egg; but when not very hungry, they pluck the feathers off. When young, one of them would occasionally get out between the bars of the cage, and take a flight about the place ; on its being confined again, the bird that re- mained behind chastised the transgressor, which, as an additional mark of disfavour, was not permitted to occupy the same perch with it for the remainder of that day, [in fact, was c put in the corner/] The quantity they eat daily was very small compared with what was required by a kestrel kept during the preceding summer : this bird was very ravenous, and when satisfied, would hide the remainder of the food given to it, in a very cunning manner."

The two sea eagles taken from the nest at " the Horn," were trained so far by Mr. Rd. Langtry, that they allowed him to carry them on his arm. When given liberty in the morning, they kept about the demesne during the day, generally attended his call to the lure in the evening, when they were put up for the night, throughout winch, however, they were occasionally at large'. As

The partiality of eagles for the bath is also mentioned under "Golden Eagle," p. 12.