Gibralter - Bonelli's Eagle

Location - Atlantic Ocean   

 

The day before I was refueling at Gibralter. Gibralter has an amazing collection of miniature sheets if you look it up on the net. But as I reached late at night on a midnigh, the only stamp I could source out there through the agent was this one of the Eagle. Stamp is obviously from a series of stamps "The birds of the rock". The adjoining literature says the following about these birds:

 

" Bonelli's Eagle ( Hieraaetus fasciatus) - Formerly resident in Gibralter, it still breeds in Spain and young birds are sometimes seen on the rock. It bred here untill the early 20th century, its disappearance probably a result of the disturbance caused during the construction of the runway. A lack of hunting ground in Gibralter and nearby Spain makes the return of this species unlikely. Bonelli's Eagles are a charecteristic species of the rugged country such as the cliffs and crags around the Mediterranean. It also breeds in Africa and across asia all the way to Indonesia. "

 

About the stamp itself, the painting is beautiful, except that the Eagle seems to be dozing off to sleep. In the background we can see the Rock of Gibralter as seen from the south and on the top right corner, you can see the Spanish coast behind the rock.

 

For a better view of the rock, please check out my regular bog (link on the right) where pictures of the area are posted.

 

Cheers all !!  Post cards & covers sent out to the same bunh of people as from Algeria, so not posting your names again. Let me know once you get them.