National Museum, 17; Philadelphia Academy, 14; Boston Society, 3; Museum
Comparative Zoölogy, 3; Coll. R. Ridgway, 2; Coll. J. C. Sharp, Jr., 1;
W. S. Brewer, 1. Total, 41.
_Measurements._
+------+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+---------+----------+
| Sex. | Wing. | Tail. | Culmen. | Tarsus. | Middle |Specimens.|
| | | | | | Toe. | |
+------+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+---------+----------+
|♂ Ad. |20.00–23.00|11.00–13.00|1.85–2.00|2.65–3.40|2.35–2.65| 10 |
+------+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+---------+----------+
|♂ Juv.|23.50–25.00|12.00–15.25|1.95–2.20|3.20–3.30|2.70–2.90| 5 |
+------+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+---------+----------+
|♀ Ad. |23.50–25.00|12.50–13.50|1.90–2.20|3.40–3.60|2.55–2.80| 7 |
+------+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+---------+----------+
|♀ Juv.|25.50–26.00|15.00–15.50|2.10–2.20|3.25–3.70|2.55–3.10| 2 |
+------+-----------+-----------+---------+---------+---------+----------+
The “Bird of Washington” of Audubon was, without the least doubt, a
very large immature female, in about the second year: the discrepancies
between Audubon’s figure and description, and the real characters of
the young Bald Eagle, are very probably the result of carelessness
and faulty memory; the stretch of wing of “10 feet 2 inches” is, no
doubt, an exaggeration; and the peculiar scutellation of the tarsus,
as exhibited in his plate, was as certainly caused by this portion of
the figure being worked up from memory. The probability is also that
the description was made up, or at least very much added to, from this
plate, as there is no record of Mr. Audubon’s specimens having been
preserved. It is by no means strange that persons should consider these
large grayish Eagles a different species from the smaller white-headed
ones, since their proportions are as different as their colors; and
throughout the country, unscientific people, and among them experienced
hunters, distinguish the three stages described above as the “bald,”
“big gray,” and “black” Eagles. Nothing is more certain, however, than
that all are only different stages of one and the same bird.
In the preceding table of measurements the old and immature specimens
are given separately, in order to prove the remarkable fact that the
latter have longer wings and tails than the former. This feature is not
confined to the present bird, however, but applies as a general rule to
all _Falconidæ_.
HABITS. The White-headed Eagle is widely diffused throughout the North
American continent, from about latitude 58° north to the Gulf of Mexico
and Central America.
Sir John Richardson, in _Fauna Boreali-Americana_ (Vol. II, p. 15),
states that he did not meet with this species north of 62°, although
he found it common between that point and Lake Superior. He also
states that they leave the fur-countries in October, when the rivers
are frozen. Subsequently, in his expedition overland to the Arctic
Seas, in 1848, he found occasion to change his first impressions quite
materially. He gives it as abundant at Half-Moon Lake, in latitude
56° north. He also speaks of finding both the Osprey and White-headed
Eagle building their nests on the banks of Bear Lake River, in about
60° north. We find in his notes, that White-headed Eagles made their
appearance at Fort Confidence, latitude 66° 54′, as early as May
17, before the ice had given way in the rivers; and in his tables
of phenomena observed at the Cumberland House, in latitude 54°, we
also observe that a White-headed Eagle was seen as early as the 24th
of March, “being almost always the first of the summer birds which
arrives.”
[Illustration: _Haliaëtus leucocephalus._]
Mr. MacFarlane found these Eagles breeding on Lockhart River, latitude
67° 30′, but does not regard it as abundant in that locality, and from
the information he has received from the Indians, he presumes latitude
68° to be its extreme northern range. In the following year, 1862, this
supposition was in part confirmed by his finding a pair breeding on
the same river, near its junction with the Anderson, in latitude 68°
north. Mr. B. E. Ross states that it ranges to the Arctic Circle, and is
numerous around Great Slave and Bear Lakes. It proved to very common at
Sitka, where Bischoff obtained a number of specimens.
Dr. Cooper, during his journey northward to the 49th degree, found
this one of the most abundant birds of the Falcon tribe in Washington
Territory, particularly along the Columbia River. It is a constant
resident in the Territory, and is said to lay its eggs as early as
February. He saw large numbers along the Columbia, sitting on some log
or cliff over the water. He never met with it about high mountain tops
nor on the plains east of the Rocky Mountains.
Dr. Newberry met with this Eagle in the interior of Northern California,
along the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers. He found it very common
at the Cascades of the Columbia, at the Falls of the Willamette, and
still more abundant about the chain of lakes in the Klamath basin, and
also in the Cascade Range, among the mountain lakes, and wherever fish
was attainable. They exhibited little shyness, and were easily brought
within rifle range.
In Florida, Mr. Allen found this bird very common, breeding as early as
January. It was very abundant on the upper St. John’s, and especially
so at Lake Monroe. It is also equally common in Texas, according to
Dresser, especially near the headwaters of some of the rivers. He
was told by his guide, Westfall, that in passing a distance of forty
miles he had noticed eight nests. It also breeds on the Altacosa. Dr.
Woodhouse found these birds, but nowhere very abundant, from the Gulf of
Mexico to the Pacific, along his entire route, and Dr. Coues observed
them near Fort Whipple.
The statements of Temminck that this Eagle has been taken accidentally
in Central Europe, Switzerland, and Germany, and also that it breeds in
Northwestern Europe, are not now credited; and more recent scrutiny of
these supposed facts cast discredit upon them, and show that there is no
well-authenticated instance of its having been detected in Europe.
The White-headed Eagle appears to be equally well adapted by nature for
the endurance of heat or cold, and is apparently indifferent to either.
Its residence is influenced only by its abundance of food, especially
that of fish; and it seems to matter very little whether that plenty
is procurable within the Arctic Circle or on the coast and rivers of
Florida and Texas. In places like the Falls of Niagara, where the stream
is ever liable to contribute the remains of animals destroyed by the
descent of the torrent, this Eagle is especially abundant. Unscrupulous,
greedy, voracious, not select in its choice of food, and capable of
providing for itself when necessity compels, we find this not altogether
unsuitable emblem of our country now enacting the tyrant and robber and
plundering the Fishhawk of the fruits of its industry, now sharing with
the Raven and the Vulture the dead salmon of the Columbia, and in other
places diving for and catching its own fish. The impetuosity and skill
with which it pursues, overtakes, and robs the Fishhawk, bearing off a
fish it has just taken, must be witnessed to be appreciated; and the
swiftness with which the Eagle can dart down upon and seize the booty,
which the Hawk has been compelled to let fall, before it reaches the
water, is not the least wonderful feature of this striking performance.
On the banks of the Columbia, where there are no Fishhawks to depend
upon, this bird finds an easy subsistence on the vast numbers of dead
and dying salmon which abound; and in Florida Mr. Allen has observed it
dive and catch its own fish. This is also confirmed by the statements of
other naturalists. Wilson also accuses this Eagle of destroying great
numbers of young pigs in the Southern States, young lambs, and even
sickly sheep; and in one instance it attempted to carry off a child,
which was only saved by its dress giving way.
The White-headed Eagle breeds along the Atlantic coast from the St.
Lawrence to Florida, and thence westward to Mexico along the coast and
among the tributaries of the Gulf. In the interior it breeds as far
north as the Arctic Circle.
Richardson states that it abounds in the watery districts of Rupert’s
Land, and a nest may be looked for within every twenty or thirty miles.
Each pair appropriates a certain range of country, on which they are
said to suffer no intruders of their own species to encroach; but the
nest of the Osprey is often placed at no great distance from that of
the Eagle. Some of the voyagers had the curiosity to visit an Eagle’s
nest, which was built on the cleft summit of a balsam poplar, of sticks,
many of them as thick as a man’s wrist. It contained two young birds,
well fledged, with a good store of fish in a very odoriferous condition.
While the men were climbing the tree, the female parent hovered close
around, and threatened an attack on the invaders; but the male kept
aloof, making circles high in the air.
In California, where the rocky coast is destitute of convenient trees,
the White-headed Eagle resorts to rocky cliffs as the safest and most
convenient places for nesting. We have the authority of Richardson
for the same deviation from its usual resort to trees in parts of the
fur-countries where the latter are wanting. The climate apparently
exerts a certain influence, though not so much as might be supposed.
In the Southern States it nests seven weeks earlier than in Maine, in
both of which regions it is resident throughout the year. Farther north,
where the severity of the cold, by closing the ponds and rivers with
solid ice, places their food beyond their reach, and where they are only
visitants in the warmer season, they, of course, nest still later, for
the reason that they do not reach these regions until after the breeding
season of more southern birds of the species.
In the extreme Southern States, as in California, the White-headed
Eagle breeds as early as February. In Maine, the general impression has
been that the eggs are not deposited before May, and at a still later
period in the more northern portions of the United States. More recent
observations show this to be incorrect, and that these birds breed at
a much earlier season of the year. Mr. Audubon speaks of having once
shot a female on her eggs, near the Mississippi, as early as the 17th
of January. Dr. Gambel found White-headed Eagles nesting on the cliffs
along the shores of the Pacific in February and March.
Having occasion to visit the State of Maine in April, 1856, near the
Damariscotta River, the banks of which stream are frequented by these
birds on account of the abundance of fish, I was informed that a pair
had constructed a nest in a neighboring wood, which they had occupied
for several successive years. The previous season (1855), late in
May, my informant had climbed a tree in the immediate neighborhood,
commanding a full view of the nest. It then contained young nearly
grown. From this statement I was led to conclude that there was no time
to be lost if we would secure the eggs before hatching. We accordingly
visited the nest on the 27th of April, and found it situated on a tall
pine, at least sixty feet from the ground. The tree stood in a swampy
wood, within a few rods of the stage road, and not more than half a mile
from the village of Damariscotta. It contained no limbs or branches to
facilitate ascent for at least the distance of thirty feet, and the
trunk at the base was from six to nine feet in circumference, rendering
it impossible to mount the tree by the aid only of the hands and feet.
My assistant was, however, drawn up, by means of a rope fastened round
his body, to a height where the branches of the tree rendered the
remainder of the ascent comparatively easy. While he was ascending, we
observed several Eagles flying over our heads, but at a great height.
One only approached us; but, as soon as we were noticed, the bird made
a precipitate retreat. It was apparently conveying food to the nest,
and was not at first aware of our presence; after which it hovered at
a distance, uttering hoarse, disagreeable cries of displeasure, not
unlike the imperfect barking of a dog. No attempt was made to molest or
interrupt the man as he ascended to, or after he had reached, the nest.
We found, when he had climbed to the nest, that the female had been
sitting upon it all the while, and only left when the unwelcome caller
was near enough to have reached her with his hands. She too flew over
the man’s head in somewhat close proximity, uttering frequent cries of
distress, but made no effort whatever to attack him.
The nest was found to contain no egg, and but a single bird, apparently
about a fortnight old. It was some six or seven inches in length,
its weight between one and two pounds, and its head and claws
disproportionately large. It was covered uniformly with a thick, close,
and soft downy plumage, which was of a clean deep straw-color. There was
not the least admixture of gray or brown. The young bird was completely
helpless, and uttered almost constant cries for food. It ate readily
whenever fish or meat was offered it, but was unable to support itself
upon its legs. It was taken to my host’s house, where it was well cared
for, and for a while, with careful attention, it did well and grew
apace, manifesting a most inordinate and insatiable appetite.
The nest was described to me by my assistant as a platform between
five and six feet in diameter, and at least four in thickness. It was
constructed of regular layers of large sticks, each several feet in
length, and from an inch to an inch and a half in thickness. Its surface
was perfectly flat, and was “finished off,” to use his expression, with
tufts of grass, dry leaves, mosses, lichens, small twigs, etc., etc. He
found in it, by the side of the young Eagle, four or five large eels,
each of which was about two feet in length, showing that the parent
birds provide liberally for their own wants and those of their young.
Estimating the age of the young Eagle at ten days, and allowing four
weeks for incubation, and at least one week’s interval between the
deposition and the commencement of the parent bird’s sitting upon it, we
have very nearly the exact period at which the egg was laid, March 13.
This occurred at the coldest period of the season, when the ground
was covered with snow to an unusual depth, and when the thermometer
indicated a temperature at that time frequently as low as 15° below
zero.
The nest is usually of great size, composed of sticks from three to five
feet in length, pieces of turf, weeds, and moss. Its diameter is about
five feet, and its depth is not unfrequently as great. In the warmer
localities, where it breeds, the pair usually frequent the same nest
throughout the year, and make it their permanent place of resort. This
is also true, probably, wherever this Eagle remains throughout the year.
Mr. T. H. Jackson, of West Chester, Pa., informs me that he met with
three fresh eggs of this species in Maryland, on the 11th of February,
1871.
The eggs are usually two, sometimes three or four, in number; they
are nearly spherical, equally rounded at either end, and more or less
granulated on their surface. Their color is a dull white, unspotted, but
often stained by incubation to a dirty white or a light soiled drab.
Two eggs in my collection present the following measurements: Length
3 inches, breadth 2.75; length 2.88 inches, breadth 2.80. The first
was obtained in New Jersey by Alexander Wilson, the ornithologist; the
latter by Dr. Trudeau, in Louisiana.
Another, taken from a nest in Texas by Dr. Heermann, measured 2.80
by 2.20 inches. A fourth, from Sitka, measures 2.75 by 2.25 inches.
These measurements, so far as they may be taken as typical, exhibit but
little variation in size between the most northern and the most southern
specimens.
Several nests were met with and the eggs taken by Mr. MacFarlane near
Anderson River. They were generally built in high trees not far from
river-banks. In a few instances the parents made hostile demonstrations
when their nests were robbed, but generally kept at a safe distance,
uttering loud and discordant sounds. The nests were built of dry sticks
and decayed branches, and lined with deer’s hair, mosses, hay, and other
similar soft materials.
Mr. Dall was informed by the Indians that this species breeds among the
Alaskan mountains on inaccessible cliffs. This statement, however, may
have had reference to the Golden Eagle.
[Illustration: _Falco communis_ (Europe), p. 138.]