The Virginia Gazette

We are informed a bird of a very extraordinary nature has been brought to Europe on board the Nottingham East Indiaman. It is called the Hurcill by the natives of the Coromandel coast, walks upright, and is taller than a middle sized man; the wings extended measure about 15 feet: its colour is a mixture of black and white. Though a bird of prey, and constantly doing great mischief to the Indians, by carrying off their lambs, poultry, &c. they never destroy it, as they, according to their superstitious notions, hold it in a sacred light, imagining that the spirits of the deceased Bramins, by means of the transmigration of souls, inhabit them.