Large, bill large, strong, compressed, and hooked at the tip; wing long,
pointed, very strong; tarsi moderate, feathered to the base of the toes.
Tail rather long, rounded or wedge-shaped; toes and claws long; the
latter very sharp and curved. Contains about twenty species, which are
regarded as the true Eagles.
1. Aquila chrysaetos. (Linn.) The Golden Eagle. The ring-tailed Eagle.
Falco chrysaetos and fulvus. Linn., Syst. Nat., I. p. 125. (1766.)
Falco canadensis. Linn., Syst. Nat., I. p. 125. (1766.)
Aquila nobilis. Pallas, Zoog. Ross. As., I. p. 338. (1811.)
Falco niger. Gm., Syst. Nat., I. p. 259. (1788.)?
Edw., Birds, pl. 1; Brown, Ill., pl. 2; Buff. Pl. Enl. 409, 410; Wils.
Am. Orn., pl. 55, fig. 1; Aud. B. of Am., pl. 181; oct. ed. 1, pl. 12.
Very large; tarsi densely feathered to the toes. Adult. Head above and
behind and neck behind light-brownish fulvous, much varying in shade
in different specimens. Base of the tail pure white, which color
varies in extent in different specimens, but generally occupies the
greater part of the tail; remaining portion glossy black. All other
parts rich purplish-brown, very dark, and nearly black on the
under-surface. Primary quills shining black, secondaries
purplish-brown, with a violet tinge; tibia and tarsi brownish-fulvous,
tinged with ashy; toes yellow. Younger. Entire plumage mixed with
fulvous, and with the under-surface of the body paler.
Dimensions. _Female_—total length, 33 to 40 inches; wing, about 25;
tail, about 15 inches. _Male_—smaller.
Hab. Whole of North America; Oregon (Dr. Townsend). Spec. in Mus.
Acad., Philada.
Obs. We are not without doubts as to the specific identity of the
American and the European Golden Eagles. All the American specimens that
we have examined are smaller, the bill shorter, and the plumage much
darker than those of Europe. We have not at present, however, a
sufficient number of either continent, and it unfortunately happens that
nearly all our European specimens are young birds, while the American
are adults. Mr. Audubon’s plate represents this bird in nearly mature
plumage.