Tales About Birds, Illustrative of Their Nature, Habits, and Instincts

“Ten thousand warblers cheer the day, and one The live-long night; nor those alone whose notes Nice-fingered art must emulate in vain; But cawing rooks, and kites, that swim sublime In still repeated circles, screaming loud; The jay, the pie, and e’en the boding owl, That hails the rising moon, have charms for me.”

“Birds,” continued Uncle Thomas, “have been divided by some naturalists into Land and Water Birds; but more recent and systematic writers have introduced a more extended classification. Cuvier, an eminent French author, divides them into Birds of Prey—such as the Eagle and Vulture; Sparrow-like, or hopping Birds—such as Jays, Thrushes, &c.; Climbing Birds—such as Parrots; Poultry Birds—such as Turkeys, Pheasants, &c.; Running and Wading Birds, which are easily distinguished by their long legs; and Web-footed Birds—such as Ducks, Geese, Swans, &c.”

To this long and rather uninteresting detail Mary and Jane listened as patiently as possible. But no sooner was it finished, than the latter seized the opportunity to ask Uncle Thomas whether the Eagle was not the largest Bird in the world, and whether it was a native of Britain, as she had heard a story lately of one having carried off a child to its nest to feed its young?

“The largest of the Birds of Prey, undoubtedly,” said Uncle Thomas, “is the Golden Eagle. It inhabits all the wilder parts of Europe, and is also found in other parts of the world. They are, however, only to be found among wild and savage scenery, preferring for their place of habitation the lonely and elevated peaks of the highest mountains, where, from their great power, they harbour secure from the storm and the tempest.”

“Are they very large, Uncle Thomas?” asked Jane—“Larger than this bird?” pointing to a fine Falcon, which occupied a prominent place in the little museum already referred to.

“Yes, dear!” said Uncle Thomas; “they are much larger, very much larger than that. Like all other animals, they are of course subject to variations in size; their development in some measure depending on the plentifulness or scarcity of their food during the time they are in the nest, and indeed during the whole period until they arrive at their full growth; but the average size of the mature Bird is usually about three feet in length, measuring from the point of the beak to the tip of the tail, while the wings from point to point measure between six and seven feet.”

“They must be very powerful animals, Uncle Thomas,” remarked Mary.

“So strong, that they frequently carry off lambs and other small animals to their nests,” said Uncle Thomas; “and it is said that they have even occasionally carried away children. About a hundred years ago an incident of this kind is said to have occurred in Norway. While a boy about two years old was passing between his father’s cottage and a field at no great distance, in which his parents were at work, an Eagle pounced upon him and flew off with him. His parents, attracted by his shrieks, saw their dear child carried off to an inaccessible rock, and notwithstanding all their efforts, they were unable to rescue him.”

“And was the poor dear child killed, Uncle Thomas?” asked Jane.

“It appears from the story that he was,” said Uncle Thomas, “and unfortunately it is not the only instance of a similar kind. In one of the Feroe Islands, which lie between the north of Scotland and Iceland, an Eagle stooped down and carried away an infant which its mother had laid on the ground, close by the place where she was at work. It flew direct to its nest, at the point of a high rock so steep and precipitous that the boldest bird-catchers had never ventured to scale it. But the strength of a mother’s love overcame all obstacles; she climbed to the nest, but alas! she reached it too late. She found her poor child dead and partly devoured—its little eyes torn out by the cruel bird!

“I am happy to say, however,” continued Uncle Thomas, “that all attacks of the kind do not terminate so fatally. A child which was carried off by an Eagle in the Isle of Skye, in Scotland, was borne by the huge bird across a lake on the banks of which it sat down, probably for the purpose of feeding on its prey, which it perhaps found too heavy to carry farther. Fortunately however, it happened that the bird alighted at a short distance from some people who were herding sheep, and hearing the infant cry, they hurried to the spot, frightened away the Eagle, and rescued it uninjured.”

“It was very fortunate they were so near,” remarked Harry.

“It was so,” said Uncle Thomas, “and the parents were in this respect more fortunate than those of another child which was carried off by an Eagle from the side of its mother, who was at work in the fields. She saw the huge bird pounce down on her little darling, but before she could run to its assistance it was carried off, and she heard its cries as it was borne out of her sight, and she saw it no more. This took place in Sweden.

“Though the Eagle has long had the character of being a very bold and courageous bird,” continued Uncle Thomas, “it really does not deserve its good name. It is sometimes called the King of Birds, and if the term is limited, so as to convey only an idea of its great size and strength, it may be permitted; but we must not allow ourselves to be misled by a mere name. It is in truth almost the least courageous among birds, and is frequently put to flight by those of less than half its size.”

“Do they ever attack men?” asked Frank.

“Unless when they are forced to put forth their strength in self-defence, which is an instinctive operation which even the weakest animals display,” replied Uncle Thomas, “they never attack man; at least the only instance which I recollect of their threatening to do so is related by Captain Flinders, in his account of his voyage to New South Wales. While he and some of his officers were walking on shore, a large Eagle, with fierce looks and out-spread wings, was seen bounding towards them; when it arrived within a few yards it suddenly stopped and flew up into a tree. They had hardly got rid of this one, when a second flew towards them as if to pounce upon them, but it also stopped short when quite close upon them.”

“I suppose they were afraid, then,” said Mary.

“Captain Flinders imagined,” said Uncle Thomas, “that the Eagles had at first mistaken him and his officers for Kangaroos; and as the place seemed then quite uninhabited, he conjectured that the Eagles had never seen a man before; and he observed that they fed on those animals, as on the appearance of one, the Eagle stooped down at once and tore it in pieces in an instant.

“That the Eagle can defend itself very vigorously, however,” continued Uncle Thomas, “is proved by an adventure which a young man had with one in the Highlands of Scotland. He had gone out very early one morning to shoot Rock Pigeons, accompanied by a Dog of the terrier breed. As he stood watching the Pigeons, an Eagle came floating over the brow of the precipice. He took aim and fired, and the bird fell to the ground with a broken wing. He attempted to master it with his hands, but it fought with great determination, and lacerated his hands so that he was obliged to desist. He then caused his Dog to attack it, but though well accustomed to fight with Badgers and with Otters, it soon found that they were weak foes compared to the Eagle, and ran yelping away. The sportsman was at last compelled to knock it on the head with the end of his gun, nor was it killed till it had received about a dozen heavy blows. He described it as having legs as thick as his wrist.”

“It must have been a very strong Bird,” remarked Jane.

“It is perhaps only under the influence of extreme hunger, or in defense of themselves or their young,” continued Uncle Thomas, “that the Eagle ever attacks human beings. Probably to the former of these is to be attributed the attack of one on a little boy of which I will now tell you:—

“A few years ago, as two boys, the one about seven and the other five years old, were amusing themselves in trying to reap during the time that their parents were at dinner, in a field in the neighbourhood of New York, a large Eagle came sailing over them, and with a swoop attempted to seize the eldest, but luckily missed him. Not at all dismayed, the Bird alighted on the ground at a short distance, and in a few moments repeated the attempt. The bold little fellow defended himself with the sickle in his hand, and when the bird rushed upon him, he struck it. The sickle entered under the left wing, went through the ribs, and proved instantly fatal. On being measured, it was found that from the tip of one wing to that of the other, was upwards of six feet! Its stomach was opened, and found to be entirely empty. The little boy did not receive a scratch.”