GOLDEN EAGLE.
349. Aquila chrysætos. 35 inches.
These may be distinguished from the [Bald Eagle] in all plumages by the completely feathered tarsus. Plumage blackish brown, adults having the lanceolate feathers on the neck of a golden brown color, and the tail more or less mixed with white.
Nest.—These are made up of large sticks, lined with smaller ones and moss, leaves and weeds, building quite a bulky affair. Their two or three eggs are very handsome, being white, speckled and spotted with shades of brown, and clouded with gray and lilac. They vary greatly in their markings (2.90 × 2.50).
Range.—West of the Mississippi, being most abundant in the Rockies and along the Pacific coast ranges.