Canon Tristram, in writing of this bird, says : They will often dash down to the field below, sweep for a few minutes like a harrier, and then, seizing one of the great black ground snakes or a Tropidonotus in a ditch, sit down and occupy some minutes in killing the reptile, after which they carry their prize away in their claws, not, like many other eagles, devouring it on the spot.

There are several other species of this genus, all crestless or only slightly crested, while as many more with conspicuous crests have been separated under the generic name of Spilornis.

Members of both genera might properly be called short-toed eagles, and all seem to have rather similar reptile-feeding habits, with a preference for snakes.

Amongst the scores of other species belonging to this populous sub-family, it is only possible for us to notice a few of the most striking or typical.

The species thus far spoken of seem rather closely related to the eagles, and perhaps more especially to Aquila.