Page:VCH Derbyshire 1.djvu/188

 A HISTORY OF DERBYSHIRE wings. Curiously enough the same keeper trapped another and even larger bird on November 4, 1895, after it had haunted the dale for a month. Another was shot on December 2 or 3, 1895, near Curbar, and is in the possession of Mr. Hodgkinson (W. S. Fox) ; and on January 1 1, 1 896, a remarkably large and white bird was killed by a keeper on the Derwent Moors (J. J. Baldwin Young). 1 08. Golden Eagle. Aquila chrysaHtus (Linn.). We believe that there is no record of the golden eagle having bred in any English county south of the Lake district, with the exception of Derbyshire. Pilkington quotes Willughby's description of a nest found in the Woodlands (i.e. the chapelry of Derwent- Woodlands) near the river Derwent in the year 1668, 'made of great sticks, resting one end on the edge of a rock, the other on two birch trees, upon which was a layer of rushes, and over them a layer of heath, and upon the heath rushes again, upon which lay one young one and an addle egg, and by them a lamb, a hare and three heath poults. The nest was about two yards square and had no hollow in it. The young eagle was black as a hobby, of the shape of a gos-hawk, of almost the weight of a goose, rough footed or feathered down to the foot, having a white ring about the tail.' The same writer mentions another taken about 1720 on Kinder Scout in an exhausted state, and says that in 1759 and 1782 eagles were seen at Hardwick which presumably belonged to this species. In 1823 a golden eagle was shot between Cromford and Lea Wood (Glover), and J. J. Briggs (Zoologist, 1843, p. 178) records another as haunting the High Tor, Matlock, for a few days in the winter of 1843. This last bird is however just as likely to have belonged to the next species. 109. White-tailed Eagle. HaliaStus albmlla (Linn.). The white-tailed eagle is a not uncommon winter visitor to the north Derbyshire moors. Probably some of the eagles mentioned in the article on the golden eagle belonged to this species. In 18367 two were killed in the Derwent Woodlands, and in 1886 two more were killed on the Derwent Moors. A third was wounded and got away, but was after- wards found in a state of decomposition by the keepers. In 1887, on November 26, one of these birds attacked a dog, but was shot by a keeper named Hancock on Farley Moor near Matlock Bank. Another was shot near Strines in the winter of 1889, and in October, 1891, a fine bird, measuring 7 ft. 6 in. across the wings, was shot by a keeper on the Hathersage Moors. In March, 1892, an eagle (probably of this species) was seen by several people near Monsal Dale station, and remained for about a week. In the spring of 1893 an eagle was seen several times on the Ramsley Moors, but managed to escape (W. S. Fox). no. Goshawk. Astur palumbarius (Linn.). Glover includes this bird in his list, but gives no particulars. On March 21, 1893, a large hawk made a descent upon a wired aviary outside Mr. Storrs Fox's house at Bake- well. It appeared to be injured, and was squatting under the hedge when observed, but rose and made its escape, flying very low. From the description this bird must have belonged to this species. In the Derby Museum there is a specimen which formed part of the Jebb collection, and in a letter to the Hon. A. N. Curzon, Mr. Jebb refers to a goshawk shot near Ashover, probably this very bird. Hi. Sparrow-hawk. Ampiter nisus (Linn.). Not common anywhere owing to continual persecution on the part of gamekeepers and others, but isolated pairs are to be met with in all our wooded districts. The nest is usually built early in the spring, but the first egg is not laid till about May 8, and others at intervals of two and even three days, so that the old bird begins to sit about the end of the third week in May. H2. Kite. Milvus ictinus, Savigny. Described by Pilkington as common in 1789, and still well known and numerous in Glover's days, the kite has now long ceased to be a resident, and has only visited us at rare intervals of late years. According to Sir O. Mosley, it was never plentiful in the Tutbury district and had completely dis- appeared at the time he wrote. The Derby Museum contains a local specimen obtained near Ashover, and two others were shot in 1888, one on Hulland Ward and the other at Radbourne (F. B. Whitlock, Birds of Derbyshire, p. 138). 113. Honey-Buzzard. Pernis apivorus (Linn.). Two instances of the occurrence of this scarce summer visitor are on record. Pilking- ton in 1789 says that one was shot at Aston- on-Trent, and in June, 1843, Mr. John Heppenstall (Zeal. i. 247) records one as re- cently obtained by Sir G. Sitwell's keepers. 136