Range.--Whole of North America; most abundant on the Atlantic coast; breeds throughout its range. This large white-headed and white-tailed species is abundant in sufficiently wild localities along the Atlantic coast. It only attains the white head and tail when three years old, the first two years, being blackish. It is about 34 inches in length and expands about seven feet, never over eight feet, and only birds of the second year (when they are larger than the adults) ever approach this expanse. Their food consists of fish (which they sometimes capture themselves, but more often take from the Osprey), carrion, and Ducks, which they catch in flight. Their nests are massive structures of sticks, in the tops of tall trees. They very rarely lay more than two eggs, which are white. Size 2.75 x 2.10. Data.--Mt. Pleasant, S. C., nest in top of a pine, 105 feet from the ground; made of large sticks and lined with Spanish moss. 352a. NORTHERN BALD EAGLE.--_Haliæetus leucocephalus alascanus._ Range.--Alaska. This sub-species averages slightly larger than the Bald Eagle, but never exceeds the largest dimensions of that species. Its nesting habits and eggs are the same, except that it more often builds its nests on rocky cliffs than does the Bald Eagle. The eggs are laid in February and March. [Illustration 219: White.] [Illustration: Bald Eagle.] [Illustration: deco.] [Illustration: right hand margin.] Page 218 FALCONS AND CARACARAS Family FALCONDIDAE 353. WHITE GYRFALCON. _Falco islandus._ Range.--Arctic regions; south in winter casually to northern United States, chiefly on the coast. Gyrfalcons are large, strong, active and fearless birds, about 23 inches in length. Their food consists chiefly of hares, Ducks and Waders which abound in the far north. The present species is snowy white, more or less barred with blackish brown on the back and wings and with a few marks on the breast. They nest upon the ledges of high cliffs, laying three or four eggs of a buffy color, blotched and finely specked with reddish brown, this color often concealing the ground color. Size of eggs, 2.30 × 1.80. In America, they nest in Greenland and the Arctic regions. 354. GRAY GYRFALCON. _Falco rusticolus rusticolus._ Range.--Arctic regions; south in winter to northern United States. This species is of the size of the last but the plumage is largely gray, barred with dusky. They nest more abundantly in southern Greenland than do the preceding species. The nesting habits and eggs do not differ. 354a. Gyrfalcon. _Falco rusticolus gyrfalco._ Range.--Arctic regions; south casually to Long Island. This sub-species is hardly to be distinguished from the preceding; its nesting habits and eggs are identical, the nests being of sticks, lined with weeds and feathers and placed upon the most inaccessible ledges of cliffs. [Illustration 220: Gray Gyrfalcon. White Gyrfalcon.] [Illustration: Buff.] [Illustration: Buff.] [Illustration: left hand margin.] Page 219