Lammergeier ( Accipitridae )

The lammergier hunts in the high mountains of Europe, Africa, and Tibet, and is sometimes called the bearded eagle because of its short black beak. It is accused of things it doesn't do, such as flying away with babies, attacking people, and stealing cattle. What it does do is drop bones down on rocks, not for fun, but to get its food. It eats the bone marrow from inside cracked bones. The lammergier is not a killer; it seeks out bones that other animals have left behind.

The bird is scarce. In Paris there are only a few pairs left. The female only lays one egg, so population chances are decreasing. These may be the next thing to die out! If the female does happen to lay 2 eggs, she usually eats the second, as she lays them in winter. She knows that there will barely be enough food for the first baby, which will not be able to leave the nest for 3 months. The second egg will be eaten to give her nourishment.

Among other legends about the lammergier, excusing the lies about the child-killing, there is another faous legend: A Greek playwright by the name of Aeschylus was said to have been killed by a large turtle falling from the sky after an eagle mistook Aeschylus' head for a stone to crack the turtle shell on. If this event did take place, it is likely that the lammergier was the "eagle".