¥:i
,
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FOR THE PEOPLE
FOR EDVCATION
FOR SCIENCE
LIBRARY
OF
THE AMERICAN MUSEUM
OF
NATURAL HISTORY
PLATE XIX.
CHAMBA MOONAL RHE ASANT.
ALLEN'S NATURALIST'S LIBRARY.
Edited by R. BOWDLER SIIARPE, LL.D., F.L.S., Etc.
A HAND-BOOK ^
TO THE
GAME-BIRDS.
BY
W. R. OGILVIE-GRANT,
ZOOLOGICAL DEPARTMENT, BRITISH MUSEUM,
VOL. /.
SAND-GROUSE, PARTRIDGES, PHEASANTS.
LONDON :
W. H. ALLEN & CO., LIMITED,
13, WATERLOO PLACE, S.W.
1S95.
WVMAN AND SONS, LIMITED
PRINTERS,
LONDON AND REDHILL.
PREFACE.
The name of my colleague, Mr. Ogilvie-Grant, is now so well
known as an authority on the Game-Birds that very few remarks
are necessary to introduce him to my readers. The work is
founded on his volume of the " Catalogue of Birds in the British
Museum," where the student will find detailed the material, on
which he has grounded the present monographic review. The
aim of the Author has been to provide such a " Hand-book "
as may be useful to sportsmen in every part of the world, and
the present volume will prove of service to travellers in Africa,
as it gives a diagnosis, whereby every species of Francolin,
known up to the present time, may be distinguished.
The second volume will deal with the Pheasants, American
Partridges, Megapodes, Curassows, and Hemipodes, in the
same concise manner, and will, I believe, be found of equal
service to the sportsman and naturalist.
R. BOWDLER SHARPE.
AUTHOR'vS PREFACE.
In preparing the present volume, which includes the first half
of the species commonly termed " Game-Birds," my great aim
has been to treat the subject in such a way that this little book
may not only be useful as a scientific work of reference, but
also as a handy book for sportsmen and field naturalists.
With its aid, they should be able not only to identify the birds
they shoot, with as little trouble as possible, but also to find out
what is known concerning the life-history of each species.
References are, in every case, given to the more important
works, especially those in which good figures of the birds are
to be found.
The descriptions of the adult male and female have been
made as short as possible, only the distinguishing characters
being given, while the more important points are printed in
italics ; and it is believed that, in every case, the descriptions
will be found quite sufficient to enable those who have no
previous knowledge of this group, to identify any species of
Game-Bird they may chance to meet with.
In such birds as the Seesee Partridges, and in some of the
closely allied .species of Kalij and Koklass Pheasants, the
females so closely resemble one another, that it has been found
impossible to give characters by which they may be distin
guished one from another. In sucli cases the best t-uide to
VI AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
identification is the locality (if that is known) in which the
individual bird was obtained.
My endeavour has been, as far as possible, to give the de-
scription, &c., in the plainest language, devoid of scientific
phraseology, but should the reader ever be in doubt as to
which part of the bird is referred to, he has only to turn to the
diagram (of a Francolin) given at the beginning of the book
(p. xvi.), which will clearly explain the terms employed in the
description.
I have to acknowledge the great assistance I have received
from the works of Captain Bendire on the " Life History of
North American Birds," and the notes published by Mr. A. O.
Hume, C.B., in the " Game Birds of India." On the Grouse
and Ptarmigan I have also derived much useful information
from ^e "Shooting Sketches" of Mr. J. G. Millais.
W. R. OGILVIE-GRANT.
SYSTEMATIC INDEX.
ORDER PTEROCLETES.
FAMILY I. PTEROCLID/F.
I. Syrrhaptes, Illig.
1, paradoxus (Pall.).
2. tibetanus, Gould.
II. Pteroclurus, Bp
1. alchatus (L.).
a. pyrenaicus (Seeb.). ...
2. namaquus (Gm.).
3. exustus (Tenim.).
4. senegallus (L). ...
III. Pterocles, Temm.
1. arenarius (Pall.).
2. decoratus, Cab
3. variegatus, vSmith.
4. coronatus, Licht.
5. gutturalis, Smith.
6. personatus, Gould.
7. lichtensteini, Temm.
8. bicinctus, Temm.
9. fasciatus (Scop.).
10. quadricinctus, Temm. ...
ORDER GALLIN.E
FAMILY L TETRAONID/F.
I. Lagopus, Briss.
1. scoticus (Lath.).
2. lagopus (L.).
3. mutus (Montin).
4. rupestris (Gm.)
5. hyperboreus, Sundev. ...
6. leucurus, Swains, & Rich.
10
II
12
14
15
15
16
17
18
19
20
20
21
22
24
25
26
26
27
36
38
42
43
44
Vlll SYSTEMATIC INDEX.
PAGir.
II. Lyrurus, Swains 45
1. tetiix (L,). 45
2. mlokosiewiczi (Tacz ). ... ... ... ... ... ... 48
III. Tetrao, L 49
1. urogallus, L. ... ... 49
a. uralensis, Nazarov. ... 52
2. parvirostris, Bp, ... 53
3. kamtschaticus, Kittl 54
IV. Canachites, Stejn. 54
1. canadensis (L.). 54
2. franklini, Dougl. 56
V. Falcipennis, Elliot 57
I. falcipennis (Hartl.) ... 1 57
VI. Dendragapus, Elliot. 58
1. obscums (Say). ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 5^
a. fuliginosus (Ridgw.). ... ... ... ... ... 60
2. richardsoni (Dougl.) 61
VII. Tympanuchus, Gloger 61
1. americanus (Reichenb.). ... ... ... ... ... 62
2. cupido (L.). ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 65
3. pallidicinctus (Ridgw.). ... 65
VIII. Centrocercus, Swains. 66
I. urophasianus (Bp.) ... 66
IX. Peuicecetes, Baird. 68
1. phasianellus (L.). ... ... ... ... ... ... 68
2. columbianus (Ord.) 69
X. BoNASA, Steph. 71
I. umbellus (L.) 71
XI. Tetrastes, Keys. u. Bias ... ... ... 74
1. bonasia (L.) ••• 74
2. griseiventris, Menzb I']
3. severtzovi, Prjev. 11
P^AMILY II. PHASIANID/E 78
SUB-FAMILY I. PERDICIN.E 79
I. Ler\va, Ilodgs. 79
I. lerwa (Ilodgs.) 80
SYSTEMATIC INDEX.
II. Tktraophasis, Elliot. 8i
1. obscurus (Verr.). ... 8i
2. szechenyii, Madar ... ... ... ... 83
III. Tetraogallus, J. E. Chay. 83
1. tibetanus, Gould. .. ... ... ... 84.
2. henrici, Oust. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 85
3. altaicus (Gebler). ... ... ... ... ... ... 86
4. himalayensis, Gray. ... ... ... ... ... ... 86
5. caspius (Gm.). ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 89
6. caucasicus (Pall.). ... ... ... ... 90
IV. Caccabis, Kaup 90
1. saxatilis (\V. and M.) 90
a. chukar (J. E. Gray). .. 91
2. magna, Prjev. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 95
3. rufa (L.). 96
4. petrosa (Gm.). ... ... 97
5. melanocephala (Riipp.). ... ... ... 98
V. Ammoperdix, Gould. 99
1. bonhami (Eraser). ... ... 99
2. heyi (Temm.). ... ... ... ... ... ... ... loi
VI. Erancolinus, Steph. loi
1. francolinus (L.). ... 103
2. pictus (J. and S.). ... ... ... ... 106
3. chinensis (Osbeck) ... 107
4. lathami, Hartl ... ... ... 108
5. pondicerianus (Gm.). ... ... 108
6. coqui (Smith). ... ... ... m
7. hubbardi, Ogilvie-Grant. ... ... ... ... ... 112
8 schlegelii, Heugl. ... ... ... ... 112
9. streptophorus, Ogilvie-Grant. ... ... ... 112
10. sephaena (.Smith). ... ... ... ... ... ... 113
11. granti, Ilartl 114
12. kirki, Hartl 114
13. spilogaster, Salvad. ... ... ... ... ... ... 114
14. albigularis, Gray. ... ... 115
15. spilolpemus, Gray. ... ... ... ... ... ... n^
16. gutturalis (Riipp. ) ... ... ... 116
17. uluensis, Ogilvie-Grant. ... ... ... 117
SYSTEMATIC IND'EX.
VII
Francolinus — {conliiiued).
i8. africanus, Steph.
19. finschi, Bocage.
20. castaneicollis, Salvad. ...
21. levaillanti (Valenc.).
22. gariepensis, Smith.
23. jugularis, Biittik.
24. shelleyi, Ogilvie-Grant.
25. elgonensis, Ogilvie-Grant.
26. gularis (Temm.).
27. adspersus, Waterh.
28. griseostriatus, Ogilvie-Graiit.
29. bicalcaratus (L.).
30. clappertoni, Childr.
31. gedgii, Ogilvie-Grant. ...
32. hartlaubi, Bocage.
32a. dybowskii, Oust.
33. icterorhynchus, Ileugl,
34. sharpii, Ogilvie-Grant.
35. capensis (Gm.). ...
36. natalensis, Smith.
I'], hildebrandti, Cab.
38. johnstoni, Shelley.
39. fischeri, Reichenow.
40. squamatus, Cass.
41. schuetti, Cab. ...
42. ahantensis, Temm.
43. jacksoni, Ogilvie-Grant.
44. erckeli, Riipp. ...
. Pternistes, Wagler.
1. nudicollis (Bodd.).
2. humboldti (Peters),
afer (P. L. S. Mull.). ...
cranchi (Leach),
boehmi, Reichenow.
swainsoni (Smith).
rufopictus, Reichenow.
8. leucoscepus, Gray.
9. infuscatus, Cal). ...
systp:'Matic inde:
VIII. RIIIZOTIIEKA, (".ray. 141
1. longiiostris (Temm.). ... ... ... ••• ••• ... 142
2. dulitensis, Ogilvie-Grant 142
IX. Perdix, Eiiss. 143
1. perdi.x (L.) H3
a. damascena, Briss. ... ••• ■•. ... ••• ■•• ^4'^
2. daurica(Pall.) 149
3. hodgsoniaj (Hodgs.) 15°
4. sifanica, Prjev. ... ... ... 15^
X. Margaroperdix, Reichenb. 15^
I. madagascariensis (Scop.). ... ^S-
XI. Perdicula, Hodgs ^53
1. asiatica (Lath.). ••■ ^53
2. argoondah (Sykes). ... ... •■• ••• ^55
XII. MiCROPERDix, Gould 15^^
1. erythrorhyncha (Sykes). ... ••• 15^
2. blewitti, Plume. ... ... ... ••• ••• •■• ^S°
3. manipurensis (Hume) ^59
XIII. Akboricola, Hodgs 160
1. lorqueola (Valenc.) 160
2. atrigularis, Blyth. ... ... ... ... ••• ••■ i6j,
3. ardens, Styan ... 164
4. crudigularis (Swinh.) 164
5. intermedia, Blyth. ... ••• 165
6. rufigularis, Blyth 165
7. gingica (Gm.) ••• ••• 166
8. mandellii (Hume) 167
9. javanica (Gm.). ... ... 167
10. rubrirostris (Salvad.) i6S
11. brunneipectus, Tick 169
12. hyperythra (Sharpe) 170
13. erythrophrys (Sharpe). ... 171
14. orientalis (Horsf.) 171
15. sumatrana (Ogilvie-Grant) 172
XIV. Tropicoperdix, Blyth 172
1. chloropus, Blyth. 172
2. charltoni (Eyton) 173
XU SYSTEMATIC INDLX.
Page
XV. H^MATORTYX, Sharpe 174
I. sanguiniceps, Sharpe. ... ... ... ... ... ... 174
XVI. Caloperdix, Blyth. 175
I. oculea (Temm.). ... ... ... ... ... ... 175
a. sumatrana, Ogilvie-Grant. ... ... ... ... ... 176
b. borneensis, Ogilvie-Gran'. ... ... ... ... ... 176
XVII. RoLLULUS, Bonn. 177
I. roulroul (Scop.). ... ... ... ... ... ... 177
XVIII. Melanoperdix, Jercl 17S
I. nigra (Vig.) 179
XIX. CoTURNix, Bonn 179
1. coturnix (L.) I So
a. capensis, Licht. ... ... ... ... ... ... i S3
2. japonica, Temm. and Schl. ... ... ... 184
3. coromandelica (Gm.). ... ... ... ... 185
4. delegorguei, Deleg. ... ... ... ... ... ... 187
5. pectoralis, Gould. ... ... ... ... ... ... 1S7
6. novLe-zealandice, Q. and CJ. ... ... ... ... ... 188
.\X. SvNa., with a series of horny comb-like
processes on each side.
I. THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMIGAN.
GENUS LAGOPUS.
Lagopus, Briss. Orn. i. pp. 181, 216 (1760).
Type, L.lagopus (Linn.).
These birds may be easily known from all other members
PLATE II.
X.
\
FEATHERS OF SCOTCH GROUSE.
'J HE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMIGAN. 27
of the GallincE by having \\\qax fed and foes detisely covered
with feathers. The tail is moderately long, and composed of
sixteen feathers, the outer ones being nearly as long as the
middle pair.
I. THE RED GROUSE. LAGOPUS SCOTICUS.
{Plates II. and III.)*
Tefrao scoticiis, Lath. Gen. Syn. Suppl. i. p. 290 (1787).
Lagopus scotictis, Leach, Syst. Cat. p. 27 (18 16); Millais,
Game-Birds, pp. 43-62, pis. and woodcuts (1892) ; Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 35 (1893); id. Ann.
Scot. Nat. Hist. 1894, pp. 129-140, pis. v. vi.
Adult Male and Female. — This species may be distinguished by
having the flight-feathers always blackish-brow fi.
Male: Total length, 15-5 inches; wing, 8-i ; tail, 4-8; tar-
sus, 1-4.
Female: Total length, 15 inches; wing, 7*8; tail, 4-3; tar-
sus, 1-35.
Range. — Great Britain and Ireland. The only species of
(}ame-Bird peculiar to the British Islands.
Changes of Plumage. — As no group of birds, as far as we are
aware, go through so many and such varied annual changes of
plumage as the members of the genus Lagopus^ which includes
the Red Grouse, Willow Grouse, and four species of Ptarmigan,
it will be necessary to enter somewhat fully into details so as
to thoroughly understand the subject.
The Red Grouse being one of the most variable birds in
existence, we must begin by saying a few words regarding
individual variation. The ordinary varieties of the male may
be divided into three distinct types of plumage : a redfor??i, a.
* I am much indebted to the courtesy of the editors of the "Annals of
Scottish Natural History" for allowing me to reproduce the plates illustrating
my article '_' On the Changes of Plumage in the Red Grouse," pubhshed in
their magazine and quoted above.
28 Allen's naturalist's library.
black form, and a white-spotted form. The first of these, in
which the general colour is rufous-chestnut (PI. 11., Fig. 8) with-
out any white spots on the breast, is mostly to be found on the
low grounds of Ireland, the west coast of Scotland, and the
Outer Hebrides. Typical examples of the second, or black
form (PI. II., Fig. lo) are rarely met with, and are usually found
mixed with either the red or white-spotted forms, but most
often with both, and specimens in mixed plumage are those
most commonly met with. The third, or white-spotted form,
has the feathers of the breast and belly, and sometimes those
of the head and upper-parts, tipped with white. The most
typical examples of this variety are found, as a rale, on the
high grounds of the north of ^Scotland.
In \k\.Q female, no less than^fz'*? distinct types are recognisable,
the red, the black, the white-spotted, the biiff-spotted, and the
buff-barred, forms. The first two are the rarest, the latter being
extremely uncommon (PL III., Figs. 5 and 13). The white-
spotted form occurs as in the male; the buff-spotted form,
which is much the commonest and most usually met with, has
the feathers of the upper-parts spotted at the tip with whitish-
buff (PI. III., Figs. 2 and 3); the fifth, or buff-barred form
(PI. III., Fig. 4), is met with in the south of Ireland, and re-
sembles in winter (autumn plumage) the ordinary female in
breeding plumage, having the upper-parts coarsely barred with
buff and black. Very little is known of this last variety, owing
to the difficulty in obtaining birds, except during the shooting-
season.
The great peculiarity of the Red Grouse, and one without
parallel among birds even of the genus, lies in the fact that the
changes of plumage in the male and female occur at different
seasons.
The male has no distinct summer plumage, but has distinct
autumn and winter plumages, and retains the latter through-
out the breeding-season.
The female has a distinct summer plumage, which is com-
THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMIOAN. 29
plete by the end of April or beginning of May; also a distinct
autumn plumage, which is retained till the following spring.
To put it more concisely, both male and female have two
distinct moults during the year, but in the male they occur in
autumn and winter, and in the female in summer and autumn ;
the former having no distinct summer, and the latter no dis-
tinct winter, plumage.
In the Willow Grouse and Ptarmigan there are three distinct
changes of plumage in summer, autumn, and winter in both
male and female alike, the winter plumage being ivhite in all.
The Red Grouse is considered by most ornithologists
merely an insular form of the Willow Grouse, and consequently
one might naturally suppose that as the British species does
not turn white in winter, such protective plumage being un-
necessary in the localities it inhabits, the winter moult has
been gradually dropped. Now this is the case with the female
only, and we find the male, for no apparent reason, changing
his newly acquired buff and black autumn plumage for a winter
one of chestnut and black. , Further investigations may lead
to some explanation of this strange anomaly, but at present we
know of none.
Adult Male.— Autumn Plumage. — After the breeding-season a
very complete autumn moult takes place, the quills, tail, and
feathers on the feet being entirely renewed. In most examples
the feathers of the upper-parts are black, margined and irregu-
larly barred with tawny-buff, and in most cases the bars cross
the feathers more or less transversely (PI. II., Fig. 4), but in
some they are more or less concentric and parallel with the
marginal band, giving the upper-parts a scaled appearance.
(PI. II., Figs. 6 and 7.) The feathers of the chest are rather
widely barred with buff or rufous-buff and black (PL II., Fig. 1 1),
and some of the flank-feathers are more narrowly barred with
tiie same colours. The rest of the under-parts vary according
to the type to which the individual belongs, being chestnut,
black, or white-spotted, or a mixture of all three. In a bird
30
Allen's naturallst's library.
shot on the 6th of June, the autumn moult having commenced
on the upper mantle, three different sets of feathers can be
seen on the back at once, belonging to the new autumn, the
old winter, and the old autumn plumages, both the latter very
clearly showing the result of wear and tear (PI. II., Figs. 1-3).
The males at this season, no matter to what type they be-
long, bear a much closer resemblance to one another than they
do in their winter plumage, only the under-parts of the body
differing conspicuously.
The first feathers of the winter plumage begin to appear
about the beginning of September.
Adult Male.— Winter- Summer Plumage.— General colour above
black, with finely mottled bars of dark chestnut (PI. II., Fig. 5);
head, neck, and chest (PI. II., Fig. 12) mostly dark chestnut,
finely marked with black ; and the flanks mottled and barred
with the same colours, the chestnut usually predominating.
Generally a greater or less number of autumn feathers are re-
tained, and are conspicuous among the new winter plumage.
The rest of the under-parts remain the same as after the
autumn moult.
The general colour of each bird varies, of course, according
to the type to which it belongs, some being darker, some lighter.
When once the winter moult is complete, 710 change ivhatever
takes place in the plumage of the male till the following
autumn moult, except that the feathers become bleached and
worn at the extremities.
Adult Female.— Autumn-Winter Plumage.* — Upper-parts black,
* The form described is the commonest or buffs potted form of the female
in autumn pkimage. In typical examples of the red form the buff spots at
the ends of the feathers of the upper-parts are absent, and this is also the case
in the much rarer black form. In the buff-barred form, from the south and
west of Ireland, the terminal buff spot takes the form of a marginal bar, and
the feathers are practically indistinguishable from the breeding or summer
plumage. It may transpire that, in the south of Ireland, the most southerly
point of this bird's range, the female retains her breeding plumage throuj^h-
out the year, but this seems unlikely, and birds killed between the months of
April and August are wanted to settle this point.
PLATE in.
V
\
FEATHERS OF SCOTCH GROUSE
TTTK WILLOW (JROUSE AND PTARMKIAN. 3 1
with narrow irregular bars and mottlings of rufous, and a buff
spot at the tip of most of the feathers (PI. III., Figs. 2 and 3) ;
chest and flank-feathers narrowly and often irregularly barred
with rufous and black, and usually more or less tipped with
buff (Pi. III., Figs. 10 and 11). The rest of the under-parts
are dark chestnut, mottled and barred with black, or black,
barred with chestnut. The typical white-spotted form differs,
of course, in having the feathers of the under-parts widely
tipped with white.
Adult Female. — Summer Plumage.
A. Feathers of the Upper-parts.
So far as I have been able to ascertain from examinmg a
large number of specimens, the summer feathers of the uppei'-
parts are always attained by moult, and never by change of
pattern. The summer moult of these parts is very complete,
and the transformation from the autumn-winter plumage very
remarkable. Every female assumes the summer plumage, and
at this season all the different types closely resemble one an-
other, but one can generally tell by the colour of the under-parts
to which form an individual belongs. In the average female in
full breeding dress the upper-parts may be described as black,
each feather being rather widely margined, barred, and marked
with orange-buff (PI. III., Fig. i). The protection afforded by
this plumage is so perfect that, when the bird is sitting on its
nest among heather and dead grass, it may easily remain unob-
served, though only a few yards distant.
This plumage, however, varies much in different individuals,
birds from the west of Scotland, Yorkshire, and Ireland having
the orange-brown bars much brighter and wider than in the
more finely mottled and darker specimens generally charac-
teristic of the east of Scotland.
B. Feathers of the Sides and Flanks.
By the first week in May the summer plumage of the female
32 Allen's naturalist's library.
Grouse is fairly complete, and many of the finely mottled
rufous and black autumn flank-feathers are replaced by widely,
and often irregularly, barred buff and black feathers, similar to
those of the chest. It must be particularly noted that in 7i07ie
of the many females examined, in breeding plumage, were
the whole of the autumn flank-feathers cast or changed in the
summer moult, a large proportion being retained, unchanged
in colour, till the next (autumn) moult. The summer flank-
feathers are produced in two ways, either by a gradual re-
arrangement and change in the pigment of the autumn feathers
(PI. III., Figs. 6-8) or by moult (PI. III., Fig. 9). In some birds
the whole of the alteration in the plumage of the flanks is pro-
duced by change of pattern in the old autumn feathers, in
others the change is entirely produced by moult, while some-
times both methods are employed by the same individual.
In the former case, the first indication of the coming change
may be observed in the beginning of November, or even
earlier, when many of the flank-feathers show traces of an
irregular buff stripe or spot near the terminal half of the
shaft (Fig. 7). As the bird only changes about half its flank-
feathers, these buff marks are only to be observed on such as
are destined to undergo alteration of pattern, which, roughly
speaking, means every second or third feather. The buff spot
gradually enlarges and spreads along the shaft, then becomes
constricted at intervals and broken up into patches which
gradually extend laterally towards the margins of the webs,
forming wide irregular buff bands (Fig. 8). Meanwhile the
interspaces become black, and the rufous of autumn dies out.
When the summer feathers are supplied by moult, they
usually begin to make their appearance about the beginning of
March, and even when fully grown, may generally be recog-
nised from those produced by change of pattern, by their more
regular black and buff barring (PI. III., Fig. 9) The change of
pattern without a moult appears to take a long time to become
complete, for we find, as already shown, that though autumn
THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMIGAN. ;^T,
feathers, altered in this way, begin to show traces of the coming
metamorphosis as early as the beginning of November, the
colours are often imperfectly arranged by the end of April.
When the summer feathers are supplied entirely by moult, no
change whatever is visible in the autumn plumage of the flank-
feathers till about the end of February, when the first new
feathers begin to appear, though we have noted a single in-
stance of one summer feather making its appearance as early
as the middle of December.
There can be no doubt that the male completes his autumn
moult very much more quickly than the female does, many
males being in full autumn plumage by the beginning of Sep-
tember. Possibly this may be accounted for by the resources
nf the female being more severely taxed than those of the male
during the breeding-season. It may very naturally be asked
why some females should change their summer flank-feathers
jy moult, while others are enabled to arrive at the same result
by going through the much less exhaustive process of re-
decorating their old autumn feathers, and making them
serve the purpose of new breeding plumage. This is a difficult
question to answer, but it seems natural to suppose that the
more vigorous birds gain their summer flank-feathers by moult,
while nature has enabled the weaker individuals to obtain the
necessary protective nesting plumage by a more gradual and
less exhaustive process.
C. Feathers of the Chest,
The summer change of the feathers of the fore-neck and
chest in the female Red Grouse is similar to that which takes
place on the sides and flanks, but is very much more complete,
all the feathers being widely barred with black and yellowish-
buff" by the beginning of May (PI. III., Fig. 12).
As will be easily understood, these being conspicuous parts
of the bird when she is sitting on her eggs, it is most important
for her tliat the protective black and buff plumage should be
9 D
34 ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
complete. The greater part of this change is generally pro-
duced by moult ; but, as is the case with the flank-feathers,
some individuals (probably less robust females) attain the
change without moulting. The same rearrangement of the
pigment described in speaking of the flanks takes place in the
chest-feathers, and the finely mottled and barred rufous-and-
black autumn plumage becomes widely barred with black and
buff-.
Young birds in July resemble the adult female in breeding
plumage in their general colour, but the flank-feathers of the
adult plumage begin to appear about this time. By the month
of November the young are generally not to be distinguished
from the adults.
Nestling. — In this and all the other species of Lagopus, the
nestling is covered with fluffy yellow down, with rich brown
pattern on the upper-parts.
Habits. — This species inhabits the open moors covered with
heath and ling from sea-level, but is not found above the limits
where these plants grow, its place being taken on the mountain
tops of many parts of Scotland by the Ptarmigan. Unlike the
Black Game, the Red Grouse is strictly monogamous, each male
pairing with one female only, and assisting her to rear the
young. The nesting-season is, roughly speaking, April and
May, but varies according to locality and season, eggs being
sometimes found much earlier and as late as June, though the
latter are probably second sittings, the fiist having been
destroyed. The female in her black-and-buff summer garb is
practically invisible when sitting on her nest, her colours har-
monising perfectly with her surroundings.
As the young Grouse becomes strong on the wing and the
season advances, the various coveys, especially if the weather is
wet and stormy, soon unite their forces and go about in large
flocks known as " packs," the males and females generally form-
ing separate parties ; and it is not uncommon to find that all
THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMIOAN. 35
the birds killed in one drive are cocks, while on another beat
the reverse obtains.
Grouse-shooting commences on the 12th of August and
ends on the loth of December. During this period enormous
numbers of birds are shot, the great majority by driving. In
Yorkshire and other parts of the north of England where the
moors are of large extent and comparatively level, the birds pack
so early in the season, and are then so wild, that driving them
is the only means of obtaining a bag. From a sporting point
of view, it is hardly necessary to add that the superiority of
birds driven at a headlong pace over the guns, as compared
with those walked up and shot as they rise, is beyond all
question. On some of the rougher moors, when driving is im-
possible or nearly so, one may still have the pleasure of seeing
dogs used to find the birds, but unfortunately this form of sport
is rapidly going out of fashion. In the west of Ross-shire, the
Isle of Skye, and the Hebrides the tameness of the Grouse is
well-known, and in fine weather the birds lie as close in
December as at the beginning of the season, remaining in small
coveys and often sitting till nearly trodden on. Grouse are
extremely fond of grain, and during the autumn may generally
be seen in the morning and evening in numbers on stubble-
fields within reach of the moors they inhabit. Periodically the
\Taoors are devastated by a terrible scourge known as " Grouse-
disease," which sometimes destroys the greater part of the
stock in the localities affected. It is now generally agreed that
over-stocking is the primary cause, and the disease is almost
always most severe in the springs which follow unusually good
seasons, when birds have been particularly numerous and were
not sufficiently killed down. The liver and intestines are the parts
attacked, the former becoming like dull red jelly and of about
the same consistency. Although parasitic worms are usually
specially numerous in birds which have died of the disease, they
are in no way the cause of death and are often numerous in
perfectly healthy individuals,
D 2
36 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
The Red Grouse occasionally interbreeds with the Black-cock
{Lrri(7'iis tetrix) and perhaps with the Ptarmigan (Z. mutus)
hut the supposed hybrids with the latter species are possibly
merely partial albinos of the Red Grouse. Mr. J. G. Millais
records and figures a singular hybrid between this species and
a Bantam Fowl !
■ Nest. — A slight hollow in the ground, sheltered by the longer
heather and grass, and hned with moss and grass or such
materials as chance to be on the spot.
Eggs. — Vary in number from seven to ten and sometimes
more. The ground colour is pale cream or buff, spotted and
blotched all over with dark reddish-brown, which often nearly
conceals the ground-colour. Average measurements, 175 by
1*32 inches.
II. WILLOW GROUSE, OR RIPA. LAGOPUS LAGOPUS.
Tetrao lagopus, Linn. S. N. i. p. 274 (1766).
Tetrao albiis, Gmel. S. N. i. pt. ii. p. 750 (1788).
Tetrao saliceti^ Temm. Pig. et Gall. iii. pp. 208, 709 (18 15)
[part].
Lagopus albiis^ Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xi. p. 292 (1819);
Dresser, B. Europe, v. p. 183, pis. 483, 484 (1874).
Lagopus lagopus^ Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 69, pi. ii.
figs. 5-10 (1892); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii.
p. 40 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Outer tail-feathers black, with only the
bases and tips more or less white ; the flight-feathers akvays
white ; the bill much larger and stouter, like that of L. scoticus,
and the wing about 8 inches in length from the bend to the
tip of the flight-feather.
Male: Total length, 15*5 inches ; wing, S'l; tail, 4*8 ; tarsus,
1-4.
Female: Total length, 15 inches; wing, 7-8; tail 4-3 ; tarsus,
I-35-
THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTAkMIGA^^. 37
Range. — Circum-polar, inhabiting the Arctic tundras of
Europe, Asia, and America.
Adult Male and Female.— Winter Plumage. — Pure white, with the
exception of the black outer tail-feathers, which remain un-
changed.
Adult Male.— Summer Plumage. — The head and neck chestnut,
shading into dark chestnut, or sometimes even black on the
chest ; rest of the upper-parts chestnut, mottled and barred
with black, and often tipped with buff; flight-feathers and rest
of under-parts' white, as in winter. This is the most com-
plete form of summer plumage found in birds inhabiting
the more temperate parts of the range ; in those from high
altitudes, all the upper-parts, from the back of the neck, remain
white, merely interspersed here and there with a few feathers
of the summer plumage.
Adult Female.— Summer Plumage. — Very similar to the female of
the Red Grouse in breeding plumage, but the buff markings are
paler and more conspicuous and the flight-feathers are ivhite.
Unlike the male, the summer moult of the female, no matter
the locality, is always complete, birds from the far north of
Alaska being in quite as complete breeding-dress as those from
more southern latitudes.
Adult Male and Female.— Autumn Plumage. — Head, throat, and
chest light brick or pale chestnut colour, usually with finely
mottled black cross-bars (in the female these parts are generally
largely intermixed with the old summer feathers) ; the upper-
parts are black, with narrow bars of rufous or rufous-buff. The
flight-feathers, tail-feathers, and feathers of the feet are, as in
other members of this genus, renewed at this season.
Quite young birds have the first flight-feathers greyish-brown,
mottled with buff at the tip and along the outer web.
Habits. — These birds in every way resemble the Red Grouse.
Their call is the same, and their eggs are indistinguishable, but
they inhabit somewhat different ground, being chiefly found
3^ Allen's naturalist's library.
among birch- and willow-trees, and, unlike the Grouse, they are
fond of perching on trees, and prefer to roost in them.
Note. — The Newfoundland bird is said to differ in having black shafts
to the flight-feathers, and has been distinguished under the name of La^o-
p2is alleni, but specimens recently obtained from that island show that this
difference is not constant, and of no importance. Black shafts to the pri-
mary flight -feathers, usually accompanied by black on the adjacent parts of
the web, are characteristic of younger birds in the first white winter plu-
mage, but are sometimes to be seen in individuals which are certainly more
than one year old.
Nestling, Nest, and Eggs. — Like those of Z. scoticus.
III. THE COMMON PTARMIGAN. LAGOPUS MUTUS.
Tetrao lagopus, Scop, {nee Linn.) Ann. i. p. ii8 (1769).
Tetrao mutus, Montin, Phys. Salsk. Hand. i. p. 155 (1776-86).
Lagopus mutus, Leach, Syst. Cat. p. 27 (1816); Millais, Game
Birds, pp. 63-72, pis. and woodcuts (1892); Ogilvie-Grant,
Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 45 (1893).
Adult Male and Female at all seasons. — Outer tail-feathers black,
with only the bases and tips more or less white ; flight-feathers
always ivhite ; bill much uiore slcJider than in the Red Grouse
or Willow Grouse; wing shorter, males measuring about 7-5
inches from the bend of the wing to the end of the longest
flight-feather.
Adult Male and Female.— Winter Plumage. — General plumage and
middle pair of tail-feathers white, with a black patch in front
of the eye in the male, which is absent or rudimentary in the
female.
Adult Male.— Summer Plumage.— Head, upper-parts, middle pair
of tail-feathers, sides, and flanks dark brown, mottled and barred
with grey and rusty ; breast brownish-black, sometimes more
or less barred and mottled with buff; rest of under-parts
white.
Adult Female.— Summer Plumage. — General colour above black,
mixed with rufous-buff, most of the feathers being edged with
whitish-buff; middle pair of tail-feathers and under-parts rufous-
buff, barred with black.
THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMICAN. gQ
Adnlt Male and Female.— Autumn Plumage. — Upper-parts, middle
pair of tail-feathers, breast, and sides grey, finely mottled with
black, and sometimes with buff; rest of under-parts white.
The female may generally be distinguished by having some
feathers of the faded summer plumage remaining among the
grey autumn plumage.
Male: Total length, 14-5 inches; wing, 7-6; tail, 4*6; tar-
sus, 1-3.
Female: Total length, 14 inches; wing, 7-4; tail, \'\\ tar-
!-us I'3.
Range. — The mountains of Europe, and possibly also some of
the ranges of Central Asia, are the home of the Ptarmigan, but
the birds found in the latter localities should, perhaps, be re-
ferred to the more northern rufous form, Z. rupestrts, which was
the bird found by Mr. Seebohm on the Yenesei at 71}^° N.
latitude. In the west it ranges to the mountains of Scotland,
in the south to the Pyrenees and Alps, and in the east at least
as far as the Ural Mountains.
Changes of Plumage. — Mr. J. G. Millais, who has had excep-
tional opportunities of studying the plumage of the Ptarmigan
from different parts of Scotland, gives the following excellent
account of the various changes during the year : —
^^ January. — The white plumage.
" February. — The same. (In very early spring the first
summer-plumage feathers begin to appear, always on the
neck.)
" March and April. — Summer plumage coming gradually in,
the breast-feathers being the last to appear.
'■'' Afay. — Summer plumage quite complete by the last week
of the month.
^^/u/ie. — Summer plumage. Males generally showing white
tips to feathers.
'^July. — The white tips to the feathers of the back and
breast in the male have now worn off the feathers, the breast
40 ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
being very black and the whole plumage much darker, and
in the female the whole plumage is more rusty and faded.
During the last week of the month many of the blue-grey
feathers of the autumn make their appearance, and the feathers
moult from off the legs. This is the case with both cock and
hen, but some specimens are far more advanced than others.
'"''August. — A complete change of both cock and hen to
blue-grey plumage of the autumn, the whole being complete
about the 20th of this month. The hens sometimes retain
a few of the faded summer-plumage feathers till the first week
in September, most noticeably on the back and flanks. At the
beginning of this month the head and neck are more or less
dark, with a brown tinge in both sexes, but by the end of the
month the whole bird has changed to a very much paler blue-
grey, the black ribbings on the feathers becoming less distinct.
At the end of the month the feet are covered with the new
feathers, though these are short.
" September. — The fading of the feathers in both male and
female continues throughout the month ; the males exhibit a
slight difference in the ground-colouring of the back-feathers,
some retaining the brownish tinge and others a pure blue-grey.
In the brown-tinged birds the black markings on the feathers
are always far less distinct than in the grey birds.
" October. — The plumage of both sexes still continues to fade,
while the black markings become less and less distinct, till the
middle of the month, when the first pure white feathers of the
third moult make their appearance. These first show on the
back and flanks of the birds, and gradually increase, till by the
end of the month both male and female have an equal propor-
tion of both old and new feathers. The feet are by this time
quite fully covered, the feathers having been gradually growing
since the beginning of August.
" November. — A few of the old feathers of the autumn re-
main on the back, and one or two on the head. Those on the
back have, by the 15th of this month, become so pale that the
THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMIGAN. 41
small black markings across them can hardly be discerned, but
those on the head and neck do not fade much. At this season,
most of the birds will have cast the last of these old feathers,
and will stand complete in their new winter dress, in which
they continue until the end of February.
^''December. — The different plumages noted in the preceding
month may be more or less normal, but during this month
many birds, especially the cocks, retain throughout the winter
a large amount of the autumn feathers on the back. One that
I received on December 31st, 1890, from West Ross-shire, is
figured (/.<:.) as an example of this stage, and maybe taken as a
typical specimen, though somewhat dark. In December the
average of pure white birds is about one in four, but in severe
winters they vary materially, and all the birds may be pure
white." — Game-Birds and Shooti?ig-Sketches, pp. 69, 70 (1892).
Habits. — The home of the Ptarmigan is among the high stony
table-lands and rocks above the limits of tree-growth and heaths.
Like the Willow Grouse, the plumage of the male varies greatly
in different localities, and the amount of white feathers retained
during the summer and autumn plumages is greatly affected
by the latitude which the birds inhabit, examples from the north
of Norway retaining much white in the upper-parts throughout
the summer months. This does not apply to the females, all
of which get their full summer breeding-dress, which is no
doubt essential for their protection during the nesting-season.
In the same way, the mixed plumage of the males no doubt
renders them less conspicuous among the patches of snow
which, in the more northern latitudes, are not melted during
the short summer. The general habits of the Ptarmigan re-
semble those of the Grouse, their monogamous habits, mode
of nesting and feeding, being much the same, but the call is
very different from the " bee " of the latter, and is more of a
hoarse croak. The female is an excellent mother, taking the
greatest care of her young, and boldly menacing any unex-
pected intruder who may come on her unawares. She flutters
42 ALLENS NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
along the ground or runs towards her supposed enemy with
drooping wings and halting gait to attract attention, while the
young disappear as by magic, and vanish among the crevices
of the stones. Ptarmigan depend greatly for safety on the per-
fect harmony of their plumage with their natural surroundings,
and it is astonishing to see how they will sometimes rise all
round one, almost from under one's feet, on comparatively bare
ground, without any previous evidence of their presence.
Nestling, Nest, and Eggs. — Similar to those of the Red Grouse,
but the eggs of the latter are rather smaller, less thickly covered
with blotches, and more buff in general appearance.
IV. THE ROCK PTARMIGAN. LAGOPUS RUPESTRIS.
Tetrao rupestris^ Gmel. S. N. i. pt. ii. p. 751 (1788).
Lagopus rupesiris^ Leach, Zool. Misc. ii. p. 290 (1817); Ben-
dire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 75, pi. ii. figs. 11-15 (1892) ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 48 (1893).
Lagopus rupestris remhardti, p. 78; Z. r. nelsoni^ p. 80; L.
r. atkhensis, p. 81 ; L. welcht, p. 82 ; Bendire, Life Hist.
N. Am. B. (1892).
{Flaie 2V.)
It appears to me more and more doubtful whether this
so-called species should be considered more than a mere
climatic variety of the Ptarmigan. In typical examples, the
summer and autumn plumages are certainly more rufous
in birds from Iceland, Greenland, Arctic America, Japan,
and Asia ; but in Newfoundland we find a greyer form,
apparently scarcely to be distinguished from the European
bird, and similar forms are recorded from some of the islands
to the north of Arctic America. Insufficient material pre-
vents us at present from settling this point, but we believe
that the most reasonable way of treating the matter is to regard
all as climatic variations of one circum-polar species. It is
obviously useless to give endless names to slight climatic varie-
ties because they occur in different parts of the globe, when,
M
THE WILLOW GROUSE AND PTARMIGAN. 43
unless one knows the locality whence each individual is ob-
tained, it is practically impossible to name a specimen. Birds
from Iceland, Arctic America, Japan, and North Asia are indis-
tinguishable in summer and autumn, and those from Europe,
Scotland, and, apparently, also from Newfoundland and some of
the islands to the north of Arctic America are equally so, while
examples from Greenland have the markings somewhat finer
than in North American birds, though, like them, they be-
long to the more rufous form. In the white winter plumage,
all the forms are, of course, perfectly similar to one another.
The reader must judge for himself which view of the matter
is the most natural. He can regard the Ptarmigan and
Rock Ptarmigan as forming one widely distributed species
w^ith various climatic phases of grey or rufous plumage, which
occur in scattered localities ; or he may consider each local
form as representing an incipient sub-species or race, but,
from all we at present know, the former view seems prefer-
able. The mere fact that indistinguishable grey or rufous
forms are found in intermediate localities over a very wide
range, seems to show that only one polymorphic species really
exists. Among many parallel instances we may mention the
little Hemipode (Ttirfiix taigoor) found in India and the Indo-
Chinese countries,
V. THE SPITSBERGEN PTARMIGAN. LAGOPUS HYPERBOREUS.
Lagopiis alpt?ta, var. hyperborea, Sundev. in Gaim. Voy. Scan-
din. Atl. livr. xxxviii. pi. (1838).
Lagopus hemileucuriis^ Gould, P. Z. S. 1858, p. 354 ; Dresser,
B. Europe, v. p. 179, pi. 482 (187 1).
Lagopus hyperboreus^ Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
51 (1893)-
Adult Male and Female. — This species may be easily distin-
guished, at all seasons of the year, from the other Ptarmi-
gan, by having much more white on the basal part of the tail-
feathers. The second pair has the basal two-thirds of both
44 Allen's naturalist's library.
webs white, and the outermost pair shows at least the basal two-
thirds of the outer web white ; on the median tail-feathers,
the amount of white decreases, being confined to the basal
third of the outer web in the seventh pair.
Range. — Only known to occur in Spitsbergen.
Ha'bits. — According to Mr. Abel Chapman, the cry of this
bird differs from that of the Common Ptarmigan and resembles
the " bee " of the Red and Willow Grouse, instead of the
hoarse croak of the Ptarmigan.
VI. THE WHITE-TAILED PTARMIGAN. LAGOPUS LEUCURUS.
Tetrao {Lagopus) leucurus, Swains, and Richards. Faun. Bor.-
Amer. ii. p. 356, pi. 63 (1831).
Lagopus leucurus, Bend ire. Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 83, pi. ii.
figs. 16, 17 (1892) ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii.
p. 52 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Distinguished from the allied species
at all seasons by having the outer tail-feathers pure while, as
well as by its smaller size.
Male: Total length, 12-6 inches; wing, 7-3; tail, 4-3; tar-
sus, 1-2.
Female: Total length, 12 inches ; wing, 7-2 ; tail, 37 ; t
sus, I "4.
Range. — Only met with towards the summits of the Rocky
Mountains, from Alaska southwards to the north of New
Mexico.
Changes of Plumage — Very similar to those of L. mutus and Z.
rupestris, but the black markings on the summer plumage of
the male are much bolder, and in winter the black mark in
front of the eye is absent.
Habits. — The White-tailed Ptarmigan, Capt. Bendire tells us,
is " a resident and breeds wherever found, rarely leaving the
mountain summits, even during the severest winter weather,
.and then only descending 2,000 or 3,000 feet at most, seldom
THE BLACK GROUSE. 45
being found at a lower altitude than 8,000 to 9,000 feet at any
time." In the Rocky Mountain region it is generally known
by the very appropriate name of the " White " or " Snow "
Quail. Grinnell writes : " On the high plateaux where this
bird is found, the wind often blows with a tremendous sweep
and is almost strong enough to throw down a man. When
such a wind is blowing, the Ptarmigan dig out for themselves
little nests or hollows in the snow-banks, in which they lie with
their heads toward the wind and quite protected from it." In
general habits this species is very similar to the Common
Ptarmigan, but apparently it is mostly found in small parties
of about a dozen, and even in late autumn is rarely met with
in packs.
Eggs. — Creamy-buff to pale reddish or salmon-buff; the
markings, generally small and well-defined, varying in colour
from reddish-brown to chocolate-brown. " They resemble far
more the eggs of Dendragapus than Lagopus " {Be?idire).
Average measurements, 175 by i'2 inches.
THE BLACK GROUSE. GENUS LYRURUS.
Lyrurus^ Swains. Faun. Bor.-Amer. ii. p. 497 (1831).
Type, L. tetrix (Linn.).
Characterised by having the feet feathered, but, unlike
Lagopus, the toes are naked and pectinate on the sides. The
tail is composed of eighteen feathers, and in the male the
outer pairs, which are much the longest, are curved outwards
at the extremity.
Only two species are known.
I. THE BLACK GROUSE. LYRURUS TETRIX.
Tetf-ao tetrix, Linn. S. N. i. p. 274 (1766); Millais, Game-
Birds, pp. 21-42, pis. and woodcuts (1892).
Lyrurus tetrix, Swains, and Richards. Faun. Bor.-Amer. ii.
p. 497 (1831) ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
. 55 (1893).-^
46 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
Adult Male. — Plumage mostly black ; the under tail-coverts
pure white. Total length, 23*5 inches; wing, 10-3; tail, 8*8;
tarsus, I "9.
Adult Pemale. — Plumage mostly rufous and buff, barred with
black, the black bars on the breast being much coarser than
in the female of L. inlokosiewiczi^ and the tail shorter. Total
length, 17 inches; wing, 8-9 ; tail, 4-5 ; tarsus, i-6.
Nestling. — Covered with yellowish down, patterned with
chestnut-brown on the upper-parts.
Range. — The common Black Grouse is found in suitable
localities over the greater part of Europe and Northern and
Central Asia. To the west it extends to Great Britain, and
to the east to North-east Siberia, while southwards it ranges
to the Pyrenees, North Italy, North Ca icasus, the Tian Shan
Mountains, and Peking. It is found as high as 69° N. lat.
In some localities it is met with a little above the sea-level,
while in Central Asia it ranges to 10,000 feet.
Changes of Plumage. — During the heavy autumn moult, which
takes place in July and August, when the males are entirely
devoid of tails and generally incapable of flying more than
a few yards at most, a temporary protective plumage, like
that of the female, clothes the head and neck, and the throat
becomes more or less white. The object of this change is
obvious, for the black head and neck of the male are con-
spicuous objects among the heather and rushes, but the rufous-
buff feathers, with their black bars and marks, harmonise per-
fectly with these surroundings and enable the defenceless
birds to escape the observation of their enemies. The barred
feathers of the head and neck are not cast and replaced by
black, till the rest of the plumage has been renewed, and the
bird is once more able to fly.
The young 7nale^ unlike the Caucasian Black Grouse, attains
the black adult plumage at the first autumn moult, and by
November resembles the old male, but some of the finely
THE FiLACK GROUSE. 47
mottled shoulder-feathers and inner flight-feathers of the first
plumage are generally retained till the second season, and the
outer tail-feathers are shorter and less beautifully curved.
Females that have become barren from age or accident
commonly assume the male plumage to a greater or less ex-
tent, some examples having much black in the plumage and a
very well-developed forked black tail, each feather being
prettily edged with white. One peculiarity of these birds is
the colour of the throat, which in the most fully plumaged
examples is pure white.
The only time when the throat of the male is white, or
partially so, is during the short period when the temporary
hen-hke plumage covers the head and neck. At that season
the throat becomes white or thickly spotted with that colour.
No doubt this is the source whence the pure white throat of
the barren female is derived.
Habits — Pine- and birch-forests are the true home of this
bird, and though, when feeding, it may often be met with on
the open moors or in the stubble-fields at a considerable dis-
tance from any covert, it is truly a denizen of the woods, and
passes the greater part of its existence on the branches, where,
unlike the Red Grouse, it is perfectly at home. Black Grouse,
like other Game-Birds, are extremely partial to grain, and
in some parts of Scotland, where they are still numerous, fre-
quent the stubble-fields in enormous^ flocks, generally in the
early morning and towards evening. They are polygamous —
that is to say, one male pairs with many females, and generally
towards the end of March or beginning of April the pairing-
season commences, when the cocks are in the habit of re-
pairing at dawn and sunset to some particular spot to display
their charms to the females and give battle to their rivals.
The extraordinary pantomime gone through by each male as
he struts round the arena, generally an open patch of ground
worn nearly bare by constant traffic, is most entertaining to
48 ALLEN'S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
observe. With drooping wings, outspread tail, and many
other curious antics, accompanied by an occasional spring into
the air, he attempts to secure the goodwill of the ladies, and
when two birds meet, a slight skirmish, in which a few feathers
are lost, takes place. As a rule, no serious tights, such as one
sees between Red Grouse, occur, merely a " round with the
gloves," to entertain the ladies of the harem ; but occasionally,
when two old rivals chance to meet, a furious " set-to " may be
witnessed, the fight lasting till one or both birds are thoroughly
exhausted, bleeding and torn. These strange entertainments
last till the females — or " Grey-hens " as they are called — have
laid all their eggs and commenced to sit, when the males are
seen no more, the hatching of the eggs and rearing of the young
beins; exclusively the task of the females.
Hybrids between the Black-cock and female Capercailzie
(so called Tetrao niedius) are not uncommon, and it occasion-
ally crosses with the Red Grouse, Willow Grouse, and more
rarely with the Pheasant and Hazel-Hen.
Nest. — A slight hollow in the ground, scratched out and
with little lining ; usually well concealed.
Eggs — Generally six to ten in number. Buff spotted with
rich brown. Average measurements, 2 inches by 1-4.
II. THE CAUCASIAN BLACK GROUSE. LYRURUS
MLOKOSIEWICZI.
Tetrao mlokosieiviczi, Tacz. P. Z. S. 1875, p. 266, woodcuts;
Dresser, B. Europe, v. p. 219, pi. 488 (1876).
Tetrao acatoptricus, Radde, Orn. Caucas. p. 358 (1884) ; id.
J. f. O. 1885, p. 79-
Lyrurus mlokosieiviczi, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxn. p.
58 (1893).
Adult Male.— Plumage e?itirely black, including the under tail-
coverts. Total length, 20 inches; wing, 8 ; tail, 8*2 ; tarsus, 2.
Adult Female.— Plumage mostly rufous and buff, barred with
THE CAPERCAILZIES. 49
black, but the black bars and markings on the breast arc much
finer than in the female of L. fetrix, and the tail is longer.
Total length, i6-6 inches; wing, 7-7; tail, 5-5; tarsus, 1-85.
Rangfi. — This species is only found in the Caucasian Moun-
tains
Changes of Plumage — The young males are peculiar in retain-
ing a hen-like plumage throughout the first year, and probably
till the second moult, thus differing entirely from the young
males ^of Z. tetrix, which attain their black plumage at the
first autumn moult, and by December closely resemble their
male parent.
THE CAPERCAILZIES. GENUS TETRAO.
Tetrao, Linn. S. N. i. p. 273 (1766).
Type, T. urogallus, Linn.
The members of this genus are all birds of large size, and,
like the Black Grouse, have the tail composed of eighteen
feathers, but are distinguished by having the middle pair of
feathers much longer than the outer pair, which produces a
rounded or wedge-shaped appearance when the tail is spread.
There are no elongate tufts of feathers on each side of the
neck, nor inflatable air-sacs in the male, and the outer flight-
feathers are not attenuated or sickle-shaped.
I. THE CAPERCAILZIE. TETRAO UROGALLUS.
Tetrao urogallus, Linn. S. N. i. p. 273 (1766); Meyer, Unser
Auer.-, Rackel- und Birkwild, &c. pp. 1-15, pis. 1-3 (1887) ;
Millais, Game-Birds, pp. 1-20, pis. and woodcuts (1892) ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 60 (1893).
Adult Male.— Above dark grey, shading into reddish-brown
on the wdngs and finely mottled with black ; a metallic green
band across the chest, and the throat glossed with the same
colour. Middle of the back not barred with black ; the
shoulder-feathers not tipped with white ; and the breast and
belly black, a few feathers in the middle being tipped w^ith
9 K
50 Allen's naturalist's library.
white. Total length, 35 inches ; wing, 14-6 ; tail, 12-3 ; tarsus,
2-8.
Adult Female. — Middle of the back rufous and buff, strongly
barred with black ; breast and belly buff or whitish-buff,
barred wnth black ; general colour of the plumage darker
than in T. uraie?isis, the w^hite tips to the scapulars being
narrower. Total length, 25 inches; wing, 117; tail, 7.3;
tarsus, 2* I.
Younger males resemble the adult, but are smaller, and the
white band across the tail is wanting.
Nestling. — Very similar to that of Z. tefrix.
Range. — The pine-forests of Europe and Northern and Cen-
tral Asia, extending in the west to Scotland, in the east as far
as Lake Baikal, and southwards to the Pyrenees, Alps, Carpa-
thians, North-east Turkestan, and the Altai Mountains.
Hal)its. — The Capercailzie is an inhabitant of the pine-forests,
and spends the greater part of its time among the branches,
feeding on the tender shoots of spruce and larch ; but it is
also extremely fond of various ground-fruits, in search of which
it may not unfrequently be found in comparatively open
country at a considerable distance from the fir-woods. Like
other Game-Birds, it also shows a great partiality for grain,
visiting the stubble-fields in fine weather. On the ground, the
movements of Capercailzie are slow and dignified, and when
wounded, being incapable of running at any great pace, they
seldom move far from where they fall, usually seeking conceal-
ment by hiding, at which, in spite of their size, they are great
adepts. The weight of the old male averages from nine to
twelve pounds, but, notwithstanding his bulk, the flight is easy
and almost noiseless, though remarkably steady and rapid. It
is astonishing how closely one of these great birds can glide
past without its presence being detected, unless one happens
to catch sight of it. The habits are somewhat similar to those
of the Black Game, but the meeting-place of the males is
THE CAPKRCAILZIK.S.
51
generally some particular pine-tree known as the " laking-
place." Here, in the month of April, the male may be seen at
dawn and sunset, where, with outstretched neck, drooping
wings, and tail erected and spread like a fan, he utters his
"spel,"or love-song. This consists of three notes, each being
several times repeated, and towards the end of the song he
works himself up into such a state of blind excitement that,
careless of the surrounding objects, he heeds not the stealthy
approach of the "sportsman," who takes advantage of these
moments of ecstacy, and gradually gets within shooting dis-
tance. Thus on the Continent many a fine old cock is done
to death, for only the older birds " spel," the younger and
weaker cocks being driven from the field. Tremendous fights
take place for the sovereignty of each harem, and both com-
batants may sometimes be captured, having fought till they are
so completely ^hausted that they are unable to escape.
The flesh of old birds has a strong flavour of turpentine, and,
being extremely bitter, is unfit for the table, but young birds
are often palatable enough, if properly cooked.
Hybrids. — The female Capercailzie, as already mentioned, fre-
quently crosses with the Black-cock, and the male hybrid is a
remarkably handsome bird, with a fine purplish gloss on the
breast and a forked tail, but the latter is much less curved than
that of the male parent. The female hybrid is much more
difficult to distinguish, and may easily be mistaken for a large
Grey-hen or small female Capercailzie ; but there is an infal-
lible means of distinguishing the three to be found in the com-
parative length of the middle tail-feathers and under tail-coverts.
In the Grey-hen the tail is forked, the outer feathers being much
the longest, and the under tail-coverts extend considerably
beyond the middle pair. The female Capercailzie has the tail
rounded, the middle pair of feathers being much longer than
the outer, and the under tail-coverts do not extend nearly to
the end of the middle pair, while in the female hybrid the
tail is nearly square, the feathers being all of about the same
E 3
52
ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
length, and the under tail-coverts are much shorter than the
middle pair. These hybrids have many names, such as
Tefj-ao hybridtis, &c. The best work on the subject is
Dr. A. B. Meyer's volume quoted above.
The Capercailzie has also been known to cross with the
Pheasant and Willow Grouse.
Nest and Eggs Very similar to those of the Black Grouse,
but the eggs are somewhat larger than those of the latter bird.
Average measurements, 2*2 by i'6 inches.
SUB-SP. a. THE URAL CAPERCAILZIE. TETRAO URALENSIS.
Tetrao tiralensis, Nazarov, Bull. Mosc. 1886, p. 365 ; Ogilvie
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 65 (1893).
{Plate V.)
Adult Male — Similar to T. iirogaUus^ but the mantle and
back grey, finely mottled with black ; wings and shoulder-
feathers light reddish-brown, the latter not tipped with white ;
general colour of the upper-parts much paler than in T,
iirogalliLS ; breast and belly mostly white.
Adult Female — Mantle pale rufous and buff, strongly barred
with black ; the breast and belly buff or whitish-buff, barred
with black; and the general colour of the plumage paler than
in T. iirogallus, the white tips to the shoulder-feathers being
much wider.
Range. — The Ural Mountains.
Although at first sight this splendid Capercailzie, by far the
handsomest of the genus, appears to be remarkably distinct
from typical examples of T. urogallus from Norway and Swe-
den, I have examined numerous examples in intermediate
stages of plumage between the dark Scandinavian bird and
the light-coloured Ural form. These intermediate birds come
into the London market in considerable numbers, and are
believed to be imported from some of the more southern
PLATE V.
URAL CAPERCAILZIE .
THE CAPERCAILZIES. 53
provinces of Russia, but, so far, I have been unable to ascer-
tain the exact locahty whence they are obtained. It must be
added that, though some of these intermediate birds have
much white on the breast and belly, and are altogether lighter
than Western European examples, the Ural birds are so very
much paler, and show no trace of variation among themselves,
that they may be fairly considered at present as representing a
well-marked geographical sub-species, though most probably
future investigations will show that they completely intergrade
with typical western and eastern forms.
II. THE SLENDER-BILLED CAPERCAILZIE. TETKAO
PARVIROSTRIS.
Tetrao urogalloides^ Middend. (;?f«r Nilss.*), Sibir. Reise, ii. pt.
ii. p. 195, pi. xviii. (185 1); Elliot, Mon. Tetraon. pi. vi.
(1865).
Tetrao pai'virostris^ Bonap. C. R. xlii. p. 880 (1856); Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 6(i (1893).
Adult Male. — Mantle brownish-black, not barred, and the
shoulder-feathers less widely tipped with white, the white tips
forming an interrupted line of white spots. Total length, 35
inches; wing, 15; tail, i4'8 ; tarsus, 27.
Adult Female. — Mantle strongly barred with black ; the breast
and belly black, barred with buff and tipped with white ; and
the white spots on the shoulder-feathers forming an interrupted
line of zv kite spots. Total length, 25 inches; wing, 11 "6; tail,
77 ; tarsus, 17.
Range — This species takes the place of T. urogallus in the
pine-forests of the north east of Siberia to the east of Lake
Baikal, and is also found in the island of Saghalien, but not in
Kamtschatka.
* This name was previously used by Nilsson for the hybrid between the
Black Grouse and Capercailzie.
54 ALLEN^S naturalist's LIBRARY.
in. THE KAMTSCHATKAN CAPERCAILZIE. TETRAO
KAMTSCHATICUS.
Tetrao kamtschaticus^ Kittl. Reise Kamtschatka, ii. p. 353,
woodcut (1858); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii.
p. 67 (1893).
Adult Male — Like T. parvirostris, but smaller ; mantle not
barred with black ; shoulder-feathers broadly tipped with white,
forming a continuous white band down each side of the back.
Total length, 30 inches; wing, 14-1 ; tail, ii-o ; tarsus, 27.
Adult Female. — Mantle strongly barred with black ; breast and
belly black, barred with buff and tipped with white ; the white
tips of the shoulder-feathers form a conti?mous white hand^ as in
the male. Total length, 22 inches ; wing, ii'i ; tail, 6'4 ; tar-
sus, 2.
Range. — This species is only known to occur in Kamts-
chatka, where it replaces T. parvirostris.
THE CANADIAN GROUSE. GENUS CANACHITES.
Canachites, Stejn. P. U. S. Nat. Mus. viii. p. 409 (1885).
Type, C. canadensis (Linn.).
Toes naked and pectinate on the sides ; tail fairly long and
rounded, composed of sixteen feathers, the outer pair being
not much shorter than the middle pair ; no elongate tufts of
feathers on each side of the neck, and the outer flight-feathers
not attenuated or sickle-shaped.
This genus includes only two small North American species
of about the size of the Common Partridge of Europe.
I. THE CANADA GROUSE. CANACHITES CANADENSIS.
Tetrao canade?isis, Linn. S. N. i. p. 274 (1766); Audub. Orn.
Biogr. ii. p. 437, pi. clxxvi. (1834); v. p. 563 (1839).
Canace canadensis, Reichenb. Av. Syst. Nat. p. xxix. (185 1);
Elliot, Monogr. Tetraon. pi. ix. (1865).
THE CANADIAN GROUSE. 55
Canachites ca?iade?isis, Stejn. P. U. S. Nat. Mus. viii. p. 409
(1S85); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 69
(1893).
Dendragapus canadensis, Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 51,
pi. I, figs. 20-23 (1892).
Adult Male. — General colour above black, barred with brown-
ish-grey ; upper tail-coverts edged or tipped with g7'ey ; the
tail with a well-marked terminal rufous band ; chin, throat, and
most of under-parts black. Total length, 15 "5 inches; wing,
6'%; tail, 4*8; tarsus, 1-4.
Adult Female. — Maybe distinguished from the male in having
the chin and throat rufous, spotted with black ; the neck and
chest black, barred with rust-colour, and the rest of the under-
parts the same, but tipped with white. Total length, 14-2
inches; wing, 6*8; tail, 4; tarsus, \'\.
Range. — This Grouse inhabits the northern parts of North
America, ranging westwards to the east side of the Rocky
Mountains, eastwards to New England and Ne vv York, north-
wards to Alaska, and south to Minnesota.
Habits, — The favourite haunts of this handsome little species
are dense thickets and evergreen w^oods. Its food consists
largely of the tender spruce buds and needles, varied in
summer with berries of various kinds. The pairing-season
commences in the end of April or early in May, the eggs
being laid in the latter part of May or beginning of June.
Unlike the Capercailzies and Black Grouse, these birds are
monogamous, and there is good reason to believe that some
retain their mates for more than one season, isolated pairs
being often found together in the middle of winter. During
the breeding-season the male has a peculiar habit of drumming,
which has been described as follows : " After strutting back
and forth for a few minutes, the male flew straight up as high
as the surrounding trees, about fourteen feet; here he remained
stationary an instant, and while on suspended wng did the
56 Allen's naturalist's library.
drumming with the wings, resembhng distant thunder, mean-
while dropping down slowly to the spot from whence he started,
to repeat the same thing over and over again." Capt. Ben dire
gives another description of the drumming: "The Canada
Grouse performs its ' drumming ' upon the trunk of a standing
tree of rather small size, preferably one that is inclined from the
perpendicular, and in the following manner. Commencing near
the base of the tree selected, the bird flutters upward with
somewhat slow progress, but rapidly beating wings, which pro-
duce the drumming sound. Having thus ascended fifteen or
twenty feet, it glides quietly on wing to the ground and repeats
the manoeuvre. Favourite places are resorted to habitually,
and these 'drumming trees' are well-known to observant woods-
men. I have seen one so well worn upon the bark as to lead
to the behef that it had been used for this purpose for many
years."
Eggs. — Seven to thirteen, sometimes more. Similar to those
of L. teirix, but smaller, and the ground-colour sometimes red-
dish-buff; the markings, also, are generally heavier, some of
the spots being confluent and forming blotches. Average
measurements, 175 inch by i'25.
II. franklin's grouse, canachites franklini.
Tetrao franklini^ Dougl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xvi. p. 139 (1829);
Swains, and Richards. Faun. Bor.-Amer. ii. p. 348, pi. Ixi.
(1831).
Canace franklini^ Elliot, Proc. Acad. Philad. 186^, p. 23; id.
Alonogr. Tetraon. pi. x. (1865).
Dendragapus fraiiklinii^ Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 56
(1892).
Canachites franklini^ Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii.
p. 71 (1893).
Adult Male. — Like the male of C c^inadensis^ but the upper
tail-coverts tipped with white; no terminal rufous band to the
tail ; chin and throat black.
THE SHARP-WINGED GROUSE. 57
Adult Female. — Distinguished by having the chin and throat
rufous, spotted with black.
Range. — The west side of the northern Rocky Mountains,
extending westwards to the coast ranges.
Habits. — The habits of this species are apparently very simi-
lar to those of the Canada Grouse, which it replaces to the west
of the Rocky Mountains. It is found in the almost inpene-
trable and densely-timbered mountain ranges, generally, at an
altitude of from 5,000 to 9,000 feet, in the neighbourhood of
running water or swampy valleys. It is said to be a remark-
ably fearless and stupid bird, frequently allowing itself to be
knocked off the trees with sticks or stones, and it is often
caught by hand.
THE SHARP-WINGED GROUSE. GENUS FALCIPENNIS.
Falcipen?iis, Elliot, P. Ac. Philad. 1864, p. 23.
Type, F. fakipemiis (Hartl).
Toes naked and pectinate along the sides. Tail moderately
long and rounded, composed of sixteen feathers. The outer
flight-feathers attenuated and sickle-shaped.
I. THE SHARP-WINGED GROUSE. FALCIPENNIS FALCIPENNIS.
Tetrao falcipennis^ Hartl. J. f. O. 1855, p. 39.
Falcipetinis hartlaubi^ Elliot, Proc. Acad. Philad. 1864, p. 23;
id. Monogr. Tetraon. pi. xi. (1865).
Falcipennis falcipennis^ Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii.
p. 72 (1893).
Adult Male.— Chest uniform smoky-black. Total length, 16-3
inches; wing, 7-2; tail, 47; tarsus, 1-4.
Adult Female, — Chest black, barred with buff. Total length,
147 inches; wing, 7-2; tail, 4-3 ; tarsus, 1-4.
Range. — North-eastern Siberia, Kamtschatka, and Saghalien
Island.
In general appearance and size this species resembles the
58 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
Canada Grouse {C. canadensis)^ and may be regarded as the
representative form of that species in the Old World.
THE AMERICAN CAPERCAILZIES. GENUS
DENDRAGAPUS.
Dendragapus^ Elliot, Proc. Acad. Philad. 1864, p. 23.
Type, D. obscurus (Say).
Toes naked and pectinate along the sides. Tail long, com-
posed of twenty feathers sub-equal in length. The male is
provided with an inflatable air-sac on each side of the Jteck, but
there are no elongate tufts of feathers, nor are the outer flight-
feathers attenuated or sickle-shaped.
This genus includes three rather large forms, about the size
of a Black Grouse, but, unlike these birds and the True Caper-
cailzies, the American Capercailzie seems to pair with one
female only.
I. DUSKY CAPERCAILZIE. DENDRAGAPUS OBSCURUS.
Tetrao obscurus, Say, in Long's Exped. Rocky Mts. ii. p. 14
(1823) ; Bonap. Amer. Orn. iii. p. 27, pi. xviii. (1828).
Dendragapus obscurus, Elliot, Proc. Acad. Philad. 1864, p. 23,
and Monogr. Tetraon. pi. vii. (1865) ; Bendire, Life Hist.
N. Am. B. p. 41 (1892) ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. 74 (1893).
Adult Male. — General colour above smoky-black, mixed with
brownish-buff, below grey; chest and breast not barred and
marked with buff; tail somewhat rounded, with a wide terminal
grey band varying in width on the middle feathers from i to i'5
inch. Total length, 19-5 inches ; wing, 10; tail, 67 ; tarsus,
i7-
Adult Female. — Chest and breast barred and marked with
buff; tail with a wide grey terminal band, about o'8 inch in
width, on the outermost feathers. Total length, 17 inches;
wing, 8'6; tail, 5*9; tarsus, i"6.
THE AMERICAN CAPERCAILZIES. 59
Range. — Southern Rocky Mountains, extending in the west
to Wahsatch, in the south to New Mexico and Arizona, and
north to the South Pass.
In South-eastern Idaho the Dusky Capercailzie is said to
intergrade with the darker and more northern form, D.
fiiliginosus.
Hatits. — This and the two allied forms are perhaps the
finest, and, with the exception of the Sage Cock, the largest of
the American Grouse. In the males of all three the general
colour of the plumage is smoky-black, and hence the present
species is often known as "Blue Grouse" as well as "Pine
Grouse " and " Pine Hen." From Mr. Gale's interesting notes
published in Captain Bendire's excellent work, " Life Histories
of North American Birds," so often alluded to in these pages,
the following account is taken : " Here in Colorado the Dusky
Grouse ranges from an altitude of about 7,000 feet to the
timber-line. Having once selected a place to raise a brood
they do not stray far from the neighbourhood. Water at no
great distance is always kept in view. The lower gulches and
side hills are mostly chosen for their summer homes. During
the mating-season, if you are anywhere near the haunts of a
pair, you will surely hear the male and most likely see him.
He may interview you on foot, strutting along before you, in
short hurried tacks alternating from right to left, with wide-
spread tail tipped forward, head drawn in and back, and wings
dragging along the ground, much in the style of a Turkey-
gobbler. At other times you may hear his mimic thunder
overhead again and again, in his flight from tree to tree. As
you walk along, he leads, and this reconnoitring on his part, if
you are not familiar with it, may cause you to suppose that the
trees are alive with these Grouse. He then takes his stand
upon a rock, stump, or log, and, in the manner already de-
scribed, distends the lower part of his neck, opens his frill of
white, edged with the darker feather tips, showing in the centre
a pink narrow line describing somewhat the segment of a circle.
6o Allen's naturalist's library.
then with very little apparent motion he performs his growHng
or groaning, I don't know which to call it, having the strange
peculiarity of seeming quite distant when quite near, and near
when distant, in fact appearing to come from every direction
but the true one. ... As near as I can judge by meeting
with the young broods, these birds nest at the lowest points
about May 15, at the highest about the beginning of June.
The number of chicks seen by me in a brood ranged from
three to eight. ... In a single instance only, with a
brood about ten days old, have I noticed the presence of
both parents. Perched upon a fallen tree, the male seemed to
be on the look-out, while the female and young were feeding
close by. This seeming indifference of the male while the
brood is very young, allowing his mate to protect them, if he
really is always near at hand, looks very strange, and yet it
may be the case, since he is generally with the covey when the
young are well-grown."
Eggs. — Pale cream-colour to creamy-buff, equally marked
all over with rather small rounded spots and dots of chestnut
brown. Average measurements, I'gby i "4 inch.
SUB-SP. a. THE SOOTY CAPERCAILZIE. DENDRAGAPUS
FULIGINOSUS.
Canace ohscurus^ var. fultginosus, Baird, Brewer and Ridgw.
N. Amer. B. iii. p. 425 (1874).
Dendragapus obscurus fuliginosus^ Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am.
B. p. 43, pi. i. figs. 16-19 (1892).
Dendragapus fuliginosus, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. 75 (1893).
Adult Male. — Distinguished from D. obscurus by having the
grey band across the tip of the tail narrower, less than an. inch
ivide on the middle feathers, and by the somewhat darker and
more uniform plumage, with much fewer buff markings on the
upper-parts, especially on the wing-coverts.
Adult Female, — Can only be recognised from the female of
THE PINNATED GROUSE. 6l
D. obscurus by the narrower grey band across the end of the
tail.
This is merely a sub-species or race of the Dusky Capercailzie.
Range. — North-western Rocky Mountains near the Pacific
Coast, from California to Sitka and Alaska.
II. Richardson's capercailzie, dendragapus richardsoni.
Tetrao richardsonii, Dougl. Trans. Linn. Soc. xvi. p. 140
(1829); Wilson, Illustr. Zool. pis. xxx. xxxi. (1831).
Dendragapus richardsoni, Elliot, Monogr. Tetraon. pi. viii.
(1865); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 76
(1893).
Dendragapus obscurus richardsojiii, Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am.
B. p. 50 (1892).
Adult Male. — Easily recognised from the two forms pre-
viously mentioned by having the tail uniform black, without a
grey band across the extremity. The tail is also squarer in
shape, the outer feathers being slightly longer than the middle
pair.
Adult "P -Qe. — Resembles the females of the Dusky and
Sooty Capercailzie, but has no grey band across the tail, though
the feathers are usually margitied with grey at the tip.
Range.— Eastern slopes of the northern Rocky Mountains,
from Montana northwards into British America,
In Northern Wyoming and the eastern parts of Central
Idaho this species is said to intergrade with D. obscurus, and
in North-eastern Idaho and Western Montana with D. full
ginosus.
THE PINNATED GROUSE. GENUS TYMPANUCHUS.
Ty?npa?iuchus, GXog. Hand. u. Hilfsb. p. 396 (1842).
Type, T. cupido (Linn.).
Toes naked and pectinate along the sides. Tail rather
short and rounded and composed of eighteen feathers, the
outer pair about two-thirds the length of the middle pair.
62 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
The males have an elongated tuft of feathers and an inflatable
air-sac on each side of the neck.
I. THE PRAIRIE HEN. TYMPANUCHUS AMERICANUS.
Cupidonia americana, Reichenb. Av. Syst. Nat. p. xxix. (1852).
Tetrao cupido, Wils. {nee Linn.), Am. Orn. iii. p. 104, pi. 27,
fig. i(i8ii).
Cupidonia cupido, Baird {nee Linn.), B. N. Amer. p. 628
(i860) [part]; Elliot, Monogr. Tetraon. pi. xvi. (1865).
lynipanuchus amerieajius, Ridgw. Auk. iii. p. 132 (1886);
Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 88 (1892); Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 78 (1893).
Adult Male. — Above barred with rufous- or brownish-buff and
black ; below barred with brownish- black and white. Feathers
of the neck-tufts much produced, about 3 inches in length, the
longer ones being parallel-edged^ with rounded or trimcate ex-
tremities; chest-feathers white, with tivo broiV7i bars as tvide as
the white interspaces ; outer tail-feathers black, narrowly tipped
with white. Total length, 16-5 inches; wing, 9; tail, 3-9;
tarsus, I '9.
Adult Female. — Differs in having the neck-tufts short; the
outer tail-feathers barred with rufous-buff. Measurements
usually a trifle less than those of the male.
Range. — This species inhabits the prairies of the Mississippi
Valley, extending northwards to southern Manitoba and Wis-
consin, south to Louisiania and Texas, east to Indiana, Ken-
tucky, and North-western Ohio, and west to Indian Territory,
Kansas, Nebraska, and Dakota.
Habits. — This species is a resident throughout the greater
part of its range, but it seems that in Iowa a regular though
local migration takes place.
As soon as severe weather sets in, large flocks of these birds
leave the northern prairies and go south to winter in Northern
Missouri and Southern Iowa, the migration varying in bulk with
THE PINNATED GROUSE. 63
the severity of the winter. The curious feature of this migra-
tion is, that only the females are beheved to change their
quarters. Writing from Minnesota, Mr. Miller says : " The
females in this latitude migrate south in the fall and come
back in spring, about one or two days after the first Ducks,
and they keep coming in flocks of from ten to thirty for about
three days, all flying north. The Grouse that stay all the
winter are males."
Captain Bendire publishes the following amusing and
interesting account of the love-making of this species : " Early
in the morning you may see them assemble in parties, from a
dozen to fifty together, on some high dry knolls, where the
grass is short, and their goings on would make you laugh.
The cock birds have a loose patch of naked yellow skin on
each side of the neck just below the head, and above these on
either side, just where the head joins the neck, are a few long
black feathers, which ordinarily lay backward on the neck, but
which, when excited, they can pitch straight forward. Those
yellow naked patches on either side of the neck cover sacs
which they can blow up like a bladder whenever they choose.
These are their ornaments, which they display to the best
advantage before the gentler sex at these love-feasts. This they
do by blowing up these air-sacs till they look like two ripe
oranges, on each side of the neck, projecting their long black
ears right forward, ruffling up all the feathers of the body till
they stand out straight, and dropping their wings on the ground
like a Turkey cock. . . .
" Then it is that the proud cock, in order to complete his
triumph, will rush forward at its best speed for two or three
rods through the midst of the love-sick damsels, pouring out
as he goes a booming noise, almost a hoarse roar, only more
subdued, which may be heard for at least two miles in the still
morning air. This heavy booming sound is by no means
harsh or u'npleasant, on the contrary it is soft and even har-
monious. When standing in the opjn prairie at early dawn
64 ALLEN'S NATURALL^T's LIBRARY.
listening to hundreds of different voices, pitched on different
keys, coming from every direction and from various distances,
the Hstener is rather soothed than excited. If this sound is
heavier than the deep key-notes of a large organ, it is much
softer, though vastly more powerful, and may be heard at a
much greater distance. One who has heard such a concert
can never after mistake or forget it.
" Every few minutes this display is repeated. I have seen
not only one, but more than twenty cocks going through this
funny operation at once, but then they seem careful not to run
against each other, for they have not yet got to the fighting
point. After a little while the lady birds begin to show an
interest in the proceedings, by moving about quickly a few
yards at a time, and then standing still a short time. When
these actions are continued by a large number of birds at a
time, it presents a funny sight, and you can easily think they
are moving to the measure of music.
"The party breaks up whe.i the sun is half an hour high, to
be repeated the next morning and every morning for a week or
two before all make satisfactory matches. It is toward the
latter part of the love-season that the fighting takes place
among the cocks, probably by two who have fallen in love
with the same sweetheart, whose modesty prevents her from
selecting between them." According to Bendire, immense
numbers of nests of this species "are annually destroyed,
either by fire in dry seasons, or water during wet ones. . . .
On the prairies they generally select unburnt places to nest in,
where the old grass is thick ; others prefer the borders of large
marshes, where, during a wet season, they are almost certain
to be destroyed by water." Many nests and eggs are also
yearly ploughed up, as cultivated fields and meadows are often
selected.
Nest. — A slight excavation in the ground, generally without
any lining, but sometimes lined when materials are available.
THE PINNATED GROUSE. 65
Eggs — Eleven to fourteen in number, or even more. Ground-
colour pale buff, olive-buff, or vinaceous, with very small,
sometimes obsolete, dots of chestnut-brown.
II. THE HEATH HEN. TYMPANUCHUS CUPIDO.
Tetrao aipido^ Linn. S. N. i. p. 274 (1766).
Ciipido7iia ciipido^ Brewsl. Auk. ii. p. 82 (1885).
Tyinpa7iuchus cupido, Ridgw. P. U. S. Nat. Mus. viii. p. 355
(1885); Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 93 (1892);
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 77 (1893).
Adult Male.— Similar to the foregoing species, but with fewer
feathers in the neck tufts ; the longer ones lanceolate and poi?ited.
Adult Female. — Resembles the female of T. anie7'icamts.
This species is a smaller form, very closely allied to the
Prairie Hen, but the male may apparently be distinguished by
the above-mentioned characters.
Range. — Island of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. It was
formerly also found in Eastern Massachusetts, Connecticut,
Long Island, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, according to
American records, but is now extinct in these localities.
Habits. — The habits of this bird are somewhat different from
those of its western ally, for it is a woodland species, only met
with in the scrubby tracts of oak, and feeding largely on acorns,
though it may occasionally be seen in the open picking up
grain and clover-leaves. The area inhabited by the remaining
colony of these birds covers about forty square miles, and over
this extremely limited range they are comparatively numerous,
being now strictly protected by law.
III. THE LESSER PRAIRIE HEN. TYMPANUCHUS
PALLIDICINCTUS.
Cupidonia atpido, var. pallidtcincfus, Ridgw. in Baird, Brewer,
& Ridgw. N. Amer. B. iii. p. 446 (1874).
9 F
66 ALLEN'S NATURALLST'S LIBRARY.
Tympanuchus pallidicinctus, Ridgw. P. U. S. Nat. Mus. viii.
p. 355 (1885); Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 96
(1892); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 80
(1893)-
Adult Male. — Distinguished by the longer feathers of the
neck-tufts, these being parallel-edged and square-tipped ; chest-
feathers white, with three brown bars^ narrower than the white
interspaces. Total length, 15 inches; wing, 8-3; tail, 3-5;
tarsus, I '6.
Adult Female. — Differs from the male in having the neck-
tufts much shorter, and, as in the female of T. americanus^ the
outer tail-feathers are barred with buff. Measurements a trifle
less than those of the male.
Range. — South-western Kansas, Western Indian Territory,
Western, and probably Southern, Texas.
The range of this smaller and paler-coloured species is still
imperfectly known, but its nesting habits appear to be very
similar to those of T. americanus.
THE SAGE GROUSE. GENUS CENTROCERCUS.
Centrocercus, Swains. Faun. Bor.-Amer. ii. pp. 342, 496 (1831).
Type, C. nrophasianus (Bonap.).
Toes naked and pectinate along the sides ; tail long and
Pheasant-like, composed of twenty wedge-shaped pointed fea-
thers, the outer pair being less than two-thirds the length of
the middle pair. The males have an inflatable air-sac on each
side of the neck. Only one species is known.
I. THE SAGE GROUSE. CENTROCERCUS UROPHASIANUS.
Tetrao nrophasianus^ Bonap. Zool. Journ. iii. p. 213 (1828);
id. Amer. Orn. iii. p. 55, pi. xxi. fig. i (1828).
Tetrao {Centrocercus) urophasianus, Swains. & Richards. Faun.
Bor.-Amer. ii. p. 358, pi. 58 (1831).
^i'- F"
*1
THE SAGE GROUSE. 67
Centrocerciis urophasicmus^ Jard. Nat. Libr. Orn. iv. p. 140
pi. xvii. (1834) ; Elliot, Monogr. Tetraon. pi. xiii. (1865).
Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 106, pi. iii. figs, ti-i;.'
(1892); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 8)
(1893)-
{Plate VL)
Adult Male. — General colour above blackish, marked and mot
tied with buff; breast and belly mostly black ; the chin and
throat white, spotted with black ; otherwise very similar to the
female, though much larger, attaining a weight of eight pounds.
Total length, 28 inches; wing, 12-5; tail, 12 ; tarsus, 2-2.
Adult Female. — Has the chin and throat white, and is much
smaller, rarely weighing more than five pounds. Total length,
22 inches; wing, io'8 ; tail, 6-$', tarsus, 1-9.
Range. — The sage-brush plains of the Rocky Mountain
plateau, extending northwards to British America and south
to New Mexico, South California, Utah, and Nevada.
The Sage Grouse is the largest species of its kind found
m the New World, and is generally resident in those States
where it occurs, but, like the Prairie Hen, it is also partially
migratory in some parts of its range. As its name implies,
this bird is seldom found far from the tracts of sage-brusk
{Artemisia), the leaves of which form its principal food, at
least during the winter. As Captain Bendire explains, though
the Grouse breed abundantly on the higher altitudes of about
6,000 feet, the bushes at that elevation become covered with
snow in winter, and the birds are then driven down to the
valleys in search of food, and thus a partial migration takes
place in the beginning of winter and spring. In summer the
food is varied with wild peas, seeds, grain, and insects, and the
flesh is then excellent, provided that the birds are drawn as soon
as they are shot, though in winter, when sage-leaves form the
principal or only diet, they are unfit for the table. In the
beginning of March the males pay their court to the females,
F 2
68 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
and with distended air-sacs almost hiding the head, outspread
tail, and trailing wings, they strut slowly about before the
females, uttering meanwhile low gutteral sounds. The males
do not take any part in the incubation, and remain apart till
the young are grown. In autumn the birds pack, and may
then be seen in large numbers.
The stomach of the Sage Grouse differs from that of all
other Game Birds in being soft, very different from the mus-
cular gizzard found in all the allied forms.
Nest, — A slight hole scratched in the ground, with little or
no lining ; generally placed under the shelter of a small sage-
bush.
Eggs. — Seven to nine in number, sometimes more, as many
as seventeen having been found in a nest. Colour varying
from olive-buff to greenish-brown, rather heavily dotted all over
with well-defined chocolate-brown spots. Average measure-
ments, 2*2 inches by i'5.
THE SHARP-TAILED GROUSE. GENUS PEDICECETES.
PedioccEtes, Baird, Rep. Expl. & Surv. ix. pt. 2, Zool. p. 625
(1858).
Type, P. phasianellus (Linn.).
Toes naked and pectinate along the sides. Tail rather long
and wedge-shaped, composed of eighteen feathers, the middle
pair being more than twice as long as the outer pair.
The males are provided with an inflatable air-sac on each
side of the neck, but have no elongate neck-tufts.
I. THE NORTHERN SHARP-TAILED GROUSE. PEDICECETES
PHASIANELLUS.
Tetrao phasianellus, Linn. S. N. i. p. 273 (1766).
Pedioccetes kennicotti, Suckl. P. Ac. Philad. 1861, pp. 334, 361.
Pedioccetes phasianellus, Elliot, P. Ac. Philad. 1862, p. 403;
Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 97, pi. iii. figs. 3-5 (1892) ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 82 (1893).
?:a->
V.
^S3
,'i;«iiik;'
THE SHARP-TAILED GROUSE. 69
Fedicecefes phasianel/us, Blakiston, Ibis, 1862, p. 8.
Fediodccctes pJiasianellus^ Elliot, Monogr. Tetraon. pi. xv. (1865).
{Plate VII.)
Adult Male and Female, — Distinguished from the smaller and
more southern form, P. cohunhianus^ by having the general
colour above dark, the black on the upper-parts predominating
over the rufous, buff, and white markings ; the feathers of the
chest black, with a white heart-shaped patch in the middle
and a white fringe round the margin. Male measures : Total
length, i6-8 inches; wing, 8*4; tail, 4-6; tarsus, i"5. Female
somewhat smaller.
Range.— Interior of British America, extending north to Fort
Simpson, south to Lake Winnipeg and the north shore of
Lake Superior, east to Hudson Bay, and west to the Rocky
Mountains.
Habits. — The habits of this form appear to be very similar to
those of its more southern representative. It inhabits the
wooded districts and borders of the tundras near the lakes.
Eggs. — Seven to fourteen in number. Fawn brown, choco-
late, or tawny, covered with small well-marked reddish-brown
spots and dots. Average measurements, i-8 by 1*3 inch.
II. THE COLUMBIAN SHARP-TAILED GROUSE. PEDICECETES
COLUMBIANUS.
Phasiaiiiis colu/nbiaiins, Ord, Guthrie's Geogr. (2nd Amer. ed.),
ii. p. 317 (1815).
Pedioccetes coluiiibianus, Elliot, P. Ac. Philad. 1862, p. 403;
Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 98, pi. iii. figs. 6-8
(1892); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 83 (1893).
PediaccEfes colujubianuSj Elliot, Monogr. Tetraon. pi. xiv. (1865).
Pedicecetes columbianus^ Cooper, Orn. Calif, i. p. 532 (1870).
Pedioecetes phasianellus canipestris, Ridgw. P. Biol. Soc. "Wash.
ii. p. 93 (1884); Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 98, pi.
iii. figs. 6-8 (1892).
7© ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
Adult Male and Female. — Distinguished from the northern form,
P. pha^ianei/us, by their smaller size, and by having the general
colour above lighter, the rufous-buff and white markings pre-
dominating over the black; the feathers on the breast white,
sach with a concentric sub-marginal black band. Male mea-
sures : Total length, 15 inches ; wing, S'l ; tail, 5 ; tarsus, 17.
Female somewhat smaller.
Eange. — Plains of the United States ; extending north to
Manitoba, east to Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, south to
New Mexico, and west from Northern California west of the
Rocky Mountains to Fort Yukon, Alaska.
Capt. Bendire publishes some interesting notes by Mr.
Thompson on the habits of the Prairie Chicken, as it is com-
monly called, from which the following extract is taken : "After
the disappearance of the snow, and the coming of warmer
weather, the Chickens meet every morning at grey dawn in com-
panies of from six to twenty, on some selected hillock or knoll,
and indulge in what is called 'the dance.' This performance I
have often watched, and it presents the most amusing spectacle I
have yet witnessed in bird-life. At first the birds may be seen
standing about in ordinary attitudes, when suddenly one of
them lowers its head, spreads out its wings nearly horizontally
and its tail perpendicularly, distends its air-sacs and erects its
feathers, then rushes across the 'floor,' taking the' shortest of
steps, but stamping its feet so hard and rapidly, that the sound
is like that of a kettledrum ; at the same time it utters a sort
of bubbling crow, which seems to come from the air-sacs, beats
the an- with its wings anu ." ^tes its tail, so that it produces
a loud, rustling noise, and thus contrives at once to make as
extraordinary a spec<"'^de of itself as possible. As soon as one
commences, all join in, rattling, stamping, drumming, crowing,
and dancing together furiously ; louder and louder the noise,
faster and faster the dance becomes, until at last, as they madly
whirl about, the birds leap over each other in their excitement.
After a brief spell the energy of the dancers begins to abate,
THE RUFFED GROUSE. 7 1
and shortly afterward they cease, and stand or move about very
quietly, until they are again started by one of their number
leading off."
Nest — A hollow in the ground, generally lined with grass and
well-concealed.
Eggs. — Less richly coloured than those of the northern form.
THE RUFFED GROUSE. GENUS BONASA.
Bonasa, Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xi. p. 298 (18 19).
Type, B, lunbellus (Linn.).
Tarsi only partially feathered, the lower part being entirely
naked. Toes naked and pectinate along the sides. Tail com-
posed of eighteen feathers, rather long and bluntly wedge-
shaped, the outermost pair being nearly as long as the middle
pair. Sexes similar in plumage. A frilled ruffle of fan-shaped
feathers on each side of the neck. Only one North American
species is known.
I. THE RUFFED GROUSE. BONASA UMBELLUS.
Tetrao umbellus, Linn. S. N. i. p. 275 (1766).
Tetrao togatus, Linn. S. N. i. p. 275 (1766).
Bofiasa iinibellus, Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xi. p. 300 (1819) ;
Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 59, pi. ii. fig. i (1892) ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. pp. 85, 558 (1893).
Tetrao umbelloides^ Dougl. Tr. Linn. Soc. xvi. p. 148 (1829).
Tetrao sab inii, Dougl. Tr. Linn. Soc. xvi. p. 137 (1829).
Bonasa uinbdlus togata, Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 64,
pi. ii. fig. 2 (1892).
Bonasa umbellus umbelloides^ Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p.
67, pi. ii. fig. 3 (1892).
Bonasa umbellus sabini^ Bendire, Life Hist. N. Am. B. p. 68,
pi. ii. fig. 4 (1892).
{Plate VI I I.)
Characters and Range. — The plumage of male and female alike
is subject to great climatic variation, some individuals having
72 Allen's naturalist's library.
the general colour of the upper-parts rufous, and others mostly
grey, while in a large percentage of examples every intermediate
shade can be found. The dark barring on the feathers of the
under-parts also varies greatly in intensity, being sometimes
extremely faint, at others strongly marked and edged with lines
of a deeper colour.
The various varieties have been classed by American orni-
thologists under four different names, and are regarded as
distinct sub-species ; but as the differences in colour are by no
means entirely dependent on locality, and grade imperceptibly
into one another, it seems useless to employ names which only
apply to the more extreme forms of each type, while a large
majority of specimens, representing every intermediate phase
of colour and markings, may have either two or more names
applied to them with equal correctness. According to the
American ornithologists, the darker rufous variety {Bonasa
sabinii) is mostly met with in the wooded countries between
the western slopes of the Coast Range and the Pacific Ocean,
where the rainfall is very heavy ; and it occurs as far north as
Sitka. In Alaska, the Central Rocky Mountains eastwards
through British North America, and southwards to Utah and
Colorado, a lighter-coloured grey form {B. unihjUoides) is found
on the high ground. A somewhat darker form, with the dusky
breast-bars more defined, inhabits British Columbia, Washing-
ton, and Oregon, and extends eastwards through Canada to
the mountains of New England. Lastly, in the Eastern United
States, as far south as the mountains of North Alabama, the
lighter rufous form i^B. iDiibellus) is met with. In a series of
skins from the State of New York alone, however, all these
varieties are more or less perfectly represented, though perhaps
not in their most typical forms, and I therefore consider it
needless to employ more than one name for all the various
phases of this polymorphic species. Males measure : Total
length, 17 inches; wing, 7-3 ; tail, 6*5 ; tarsus, i"6. The fe/nale
is rather smaller.
THE RUFFED GROUSE. 73
Habits. — Capt. Bendire writes: "The Ruffed Grouse is partial
to an undulating and hilly country, one well-wooded and covered
with considerable undergrowth, interspersed here and there
with cultivated fields and meadow lands. In the southern
portions of its range, this bird is confined to the more moun-
tainous and Alpine regions, being seldom found far away from
such places, excepting in the late fall.
"As winter approaches, the coveys leave their feeding-
grounds in the mountains, and repair to more congenial haunts
along the edges of the neighbouring valleys."
Mr. Ernest E. Thompson, wTiting from Canada, says :
" Every fieldman must be acquainted with the simulation of
lameness, by which many birds decoy, or try to decoy, in-
truders from their nests. This is an invariable device of the
Ruffed Grouse, and I have no doubt that it is quite suc-
cessful with the natural foes of the bird ; indeed, it is often
so with man. A dog, as I have often seen, is certain to be
misled and duped, and there is little doubt that a Mink,
Skunk, Raccoon, Fox, Coyote, or Wolf, would fare no better.
Imagine the effect of the bird's tactics on a prowling Fox.
He has scented her as she sits, he is almost upon her, but she
has been watching him, and suddenly with a loud ' whir ' she
springs up and tumbles a few yards before him. The sudden-
ness and noise with which the bird appears, causes the Fox to
be totally carried away ; he forgets all his former experience,
he never thinks of the eggs, his mind is filled with the thought
of the wounded bird almost within his reach ; a few more
bounds and his meal will be secured. So he springs and
springs, and very nearly catches her, and in his excitement he
is led on and away, till finally the bird flies off, leaving him a
quarter of a mile or more from the nest.
" If, instead of eggs, the Partridge has chicks, she does not
await the coming of the enemy, but runs to meet and mislead
him ere yet he is in the neighbourhood of the brood ; she
then leads him far away, and, returning by a circuitous route,
74 Allen's naturalist's library.
gathers her young together again by her clucking. When sur-
prised, she utters a well-known danger-signal — a peculiar whine
— whereupon the young ones hide under logs and among grass.
' " The males never congregate during the breeding-season or
after, and I never but once saw two adult males within one-
fourth of a mile of each other between April and September.
I consider that the drumming is not a call to the female, as
they drum nearly or quite as much in the fall as in the spring,
and I have heard them drumming every month in the year. I
have never seen the least evidence that the Ruffed Grouse is
polygamous."
Eggs. — Eight to fourteen is the general number laid ; some-
times considerably more are found in a nest. Milky-white and
pale buff to pinkish-buff; more or less spotted, but not heavily,
with rounded spots and dots of paler reddish-brown.
THE HAZEL-HENS. GENUS TETRASTES.
Tetrastes, Keys, und Bias. Wirbelth. Eur. pp. Ixiv. 109, 200
(1840.) _
Type, T. bonasia (Linn.).
Feet only partially feathered, the lower part being entirely
naked; toes naked and pectinate along the sides; tail com-
posed of sixteen feathers, fairly long and bluntly wedge-shaped,
the outer feathers being very little shorter than the middle
pair. Sexes different. No ruffled frill of fan-shaped feathers
on the sides of the neck.
I. THE HAZEL-HEN. TETRASTES BONASIA.
Hazel-Ben, Willoughby, Orn. p. 126, pi. 31 (1676); Lloyd,
Game B. Swed. and Norw. p. 112, pi. (1867).
Tetnw bonasia, Linn. S. N. i. p. 275 (1766); Sundev. Svensk
Fogl. pi. xxxiii. figs. 4-5 (1856).
Tetrao betuUnus, Scop. Ann. i. p. 119, No. 172 (1769).
Bonasia sylvestris, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 514 (1831);
EUiot, Monogr. Tetraon. pi. iv. (1865).
THE HAZEL-HENS. 75
Tctrastes bonasia, Keys, und Bias. Wirbelth. p. 200 (1840) ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 90 (1893).
Bonasa betulina^ Dresser, B. Europe, v. p. 193, pi. 486 (187 1).
Adult Male. — General colour above greyish or rufous, barred
on the head and back with black ; feathers of the breast black,
margined with white, and sometimes with a white spot in the
middle ; chin and throat black. Total length, 14 inches ; wing,
6-5; tail, 4-9; tarsus, 1-3.
Adult Female — Differs from the male in having the chin and
throat mostly white, and in being rather smaller.
Range. — Europe and North and Central Asia ; extending in
the west to Scandinavia, in the east to Kamtschatka, Saghalien
and Yezo, Japan, and southwards to N. Spain, N. Italy, Tran-
sylvania, the Altai Mountains, and N. China.
Habits. — This remarkably handsome Grouse, also known as
the "Hazel Grouse" or "Gelinotte" (Hjerpe, Sw. and Norw.),
is scarcely larger than the Common Partridge. It inhabits the
lower pine-forests, birch-woods, and hazel-copses, being every-
where a local bird and generally confined to the wilder
mountainous districts. As an article of food it is very highly
esteemed, its white flesh, even after it has been frozen, being
most delicious. Von Wright says that " the Finns entertain the
very singular notion that, at the creation, this bird was the
largest of the feathered tribe ; but that year by year it has de-
creased in size, and will continue to do so until at last it will
become so very diminutive as to be able to fly through the eye
of a needle ; and when that happens the world will come to an
end."
Mr. Lloyd, in his " Game Birds and Wild Fowl of Sweden
and Norway," gives the following account : — " The flight of the
Hazel-Hen is very noisy, but short withal, seldom extending
beyond a couple of hundred yards. During both summer and
winter it is mostly on the ground, but, when flushed, invariably
takes refuge in a tree, rarely on its top, however, as some tell
76 Allen's naturalist's library.
us, but generally about half way up, and amongst the most
leafy of the branches
"The favourite haunts of the Hazel-Hen are hilly and
wooded districts. In the open country it is never found, but
somewhat varies its ground according to the season of the year.
During summer and autumn one often observes these birds in
young woods consisting chiefly of deciduous trees ; but when
the leaves begin to fall, they retire to the great pine-forests, for
the reason, as some suppose, that they may be less exposed to
the attacks of birds of prey
" The pairing-season usually commences at the end of March
or beginning of April, though the time is somewhat dependent
on the state of the weather. The sexes attract each other by a
peculiar and almost melancholy cry ; that of the male consisting
of a long-drawn whistle, followed by a chirp : ti hth tititi-ti ;
whilst that of the female is more simple, being often only a
single sustained ////, vibrating or quivering towards its termi-
nation
"The chicks are hatched about midsummer, and in the
course of a very few days, and when they are only feathered on
the wings and tail, begin to fly."
After describing the various methods employed in Scan-
dinavia for shooting these birds he says : — " The usual way,
however, of shooting the Hazel-Hen is without any dog, and
solely with the aid of the so-called Hjerp-pipa, or pipe. This
implement, which is much less in size that one's finger, and
constructed of wood or metal, or it may be the wing-bone of
a Black-cock, emits a soft whistling sound, that can be varied
according to the call-note of the bird. Such a pipe is readily
manufactured. Often, indeed, when we have accidently met
with a Hazel-Hen, has my man with his knife alone made one
out, of a sapling of some pithy tree, and that in the course of
a very few minutes
"The number of Hazel-Hens annually taken in Scandinavia
is something enormous. Brunius, in his " Hand Lexicon," pub-
THE TIAZKL-IIKNS.
77
lishccl in 1798, calculated that 60,000 were yearly consumed in
Stockholm, and 40,000 more in other parts of the country. At
the present day that number is, beyond doubt, very greatly ex-
ceeded."
Nest. — A small cavity scratched in the ground.
Eggs. — Eight to twelve in number. Pale buff, spotted with
brown.
II. THE GREY-BELLIED HAZEL-HEN. TETRASTES
GRISEIVENTRIS.
Tetrastes griseivetttrts, Menzb. Bull. Mosc. Iv. pt. i. p. 105, pi.
iv. (1880); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 93
(1893).
Adult Male. — Feathers of the breast sandy-grey, with narrow
black bars ; chin white ; the throat black, tipped with dark
rufous ; the chest reddish-black, barred and tipped with grey.
Total length, 14 inches; wing, 6*5 ; tail, 47 ; tarsus, 1-3.
Adult Female. — Differs in having the chin white ; the throat
black, tipped with buff; the chest black, irregularly barred with
rufous and tipped with grey. Slightly smaller than the male.
Range. — Eastern Russia ; Government of Perm.
Nothing is known of the habits of this pe?^feafy distinct species,
considered by some Russian ornithologists to be merely a
variety of the Common Hazel-Hen.
III. SEVERTZOV'S HAZEL-HEN. TETRASTES SEVERTZOVI.
Tet7'astes severtzovi, Prjev. Mongolia, ii. p. 130, pi. xviii. (1876);
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 93 (1893).
Adult Male. — Feathers of the breast black, barred and tipped
with white ; outer tail-feathers black, barred w^ith white ; chin
and throat black. Total length, 13-5 inches; wing, 67 ; tail,
5-3; tarsus, 1-5.
Adult Female. — Differs chiefly in having the chin and throat
buff, tipped with black. ^
Range. — North-eastern Central Asia ; Kansu, Koko-nor, and
the Hoangho River.
yS Allen's naturalist's library.
The habits of this species appear to be very similar to those
of the Common Hazel-Hen.
THE PARTRIDGES, QUAILS, AND PHEASANTS.
FAMILY PHASIANID^.
Distinguished by having the hind-toe raised above the level
of the other toes. The nostrils are never hidden by feathers.
The feet (metatarsi) are partially or wholly naked and often
armed with spurs. The toes are always naked and never
pectinate along the sides, the horny appendages so character-
istic of the Bare-toed Grouse being invariably absent.
For convenience' sake this great Family may be divided into
the Sub-families Perdicince, Phasianince^ and OdoiitophorincE, the
first containing the Old World Partridge-like genera, the second
the Pheasants and their allies, the Turkeys and Guinea Fowls,
and the third the American Partridges and Quails. There
appears, however, to be no real line of demarcation between the
first two groups, which merge gradually into one another through
such forms as the Bamboo Partridges {Bambiisicola) and the
African and Indian Spur-Fowl {Ptilopachys and Galloperdix).
The shape of the wing is perhaps the most important dis-
tinguishing mark between the Old World Partridges and
Pheasants, and, when taken in connection with the length
of the tail, is a useful, if somewhat artificial character. In
all the Perdicince, with but very few exceptions, the first flight-
feather is equal to or longer than the tenth, while all the
Phasia?itnce, with the exception of one genus, have the first
flight-feather much shorter than the tenth. Unfortunately,
the exception among the latter is the important genus
Phasianus, which has the first flight-feather like that of most
Old World Partridges, much longer than the tenth, and, w^re it
not for the long tail, which at once shows it to be a Pheasant,
one would certainly feel inclined to place it among the
Pe7'dici?ice.
THE SNOW PARTRIDOES. 79
By using the combined characters of the shape oi" the wing
and length of the tail, one can artificially separate the two
groups, and when a large number of genera have to be dealt
with, such divisions, though of no real scientific importance,
are at least extremely useful in facilitating the identification of
individuals.
The PerdicincB may be characterised as follows : —
OLD-WORLD PARTRIDGES AND QUAILS.
SUB-FAMILY PERDICIN^.
The cutting-edge of the lower mandible is not serrated. The
first flight-feather is equal to or longer than the tenth,* and the
tail is shorter, usually much shorter, than the wing. The sides
of the head are feathered, with or without a naked space sur-
rounding the eye. The most extreme form of the " Partridge "
wing is found in the Snow Partridge {Leiiva) and the Quails
{Coturnix and Syncems)^ where the first flight-feather is very
little shorter than, or sometimes equal to, the second and third,
which form the point of the wing.
The extreme form of " Pheasant " wing obtains in the Argus
Pheasants {Argustafms), where the first flight-feather is the
shortest and the tenth the longest.
THE SNOW PARTRIDGES. GENUS LERWA.
Lerwa, Hodgs. Madr. Journ. v. p. 300 (1837) ; id. Journ. As.
Soc. Beng. xxiv. p. 580 (1855).
Type, Z. krzva (Hodgs.).
The upper half of the feet (metatarsi) covered with feathers
as in the Hazel Grouse. Tail about four-sevenths of the length
of the wing, rounded, and composed of fourteen feathers. The
iirst fiight-feather equal to the third, and only slightly shorter
In one or two of the Francolins it is slightly sliorter ; but the short tail
at once distinguishes them as Perdicina.
8o ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
than the second and longest. Sexes similar in plumage, but
the male is armed with a stout spur on each leg.
Only one species is known.
I. THE SNOW PARTRIDGE. LERWA LERWA.
Perdix lerwa, Hodgs. P. Z. S. 1833, p. 107.
Leriva nivicola, Hodgs. Madr. Journ. v. p. 301 (1837) ; Hume
and Marshall, Game Birds of India, ii. p. i, pi. (1879).
Ler7va leriva, Hartert, Kat. Mus. Senckenb. p. 195 (1891);
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 100 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Upper-parts black, narrowly barred
with whitish ; under-parts mostly rich chestnut. Bill and feet
red. Total length, 14 inches ; wing, 7-5 ; tail, 4-5; tarsus, 17.
Range. — The higher ranges of the Himalayas, and extending
northwards to Moupin and Western Sze-chuen, China.
HaMts. — This handsome Alpine Partridge is about the size of
a Red Grouse, which species it resembles in its strong rapid
flight, and in the excellence of its flesh for the table. Mr.
Wilson says : " In general haunts and habits, this bird much
resembles the Snow Pheasant (Tetraogalhis), frequenting the
same high regions near the snow in summer, and migrating to
the same bare hills and rocks in winter. The Pheasant, how-
ever, prefers the grassy slopes and softer parts of the hills, the
Partridge the more abrupt and rocky portions, where the vege-
tation is scantier, and more of a mossy than a grassy character.
They are also more local, and confined to particular spots, and
do not, like the Pheasant, ramble indiscriminately over almost
every part of the hill.
'' They are generally remarkably tame. When approached,
they utter a harsh whistle, and if they keep still, it is often
several moments before they can be distinguished, their plu-
mage much resembling and blending with the general colour
of much of the ground they frequent. If approached from
above, they fly off at once ; if from below, they walk away in
the opposite direction, calling the whole time, and often cluster
THE PHEASANT-GROUSE. 8t
together on the top of some large stone in their way . .
They seldom fly far, and if followed and put up again, often fly
back to the spot where first found. At times they seem un-
willing to get up at all, and several shots may be fired at them
before they take wing."
The Snow Partridge feeds on moss and tender shoots of
small plants. It is seldom shot, as those sportsmen who tra-
verse its lonely haunts, which range from 10,000 to 15,000 feet
(for it is only met with on lower ground after severe snowstorms),
are generally in search of large game such as Tahr and Burrel.
Nest. — " It breeds on the high ridges jutting from the snow
at elevations of from 12,000 to 15,000 feet." {Wilsoti.)
Eggs. — " Very large, intermediate in sizes between those of
the Chukor {Caccabis chukor) and Koklass {Fucrasia macro-
lopha); dull white, freckled a/l ^z;^r with reddish-brown, like
the Koklass, but without blotches of colour." ( Wilson.)
THE PHEASANT-GROUSE. GENUS TFTRAOPHASIS.
Tetraophasis, Elliot, Monogr. Phas. i. pi. xxi. (187 1).
Type, T. obscurus (Verr.).
The feathers on the feet scarcely extend below the joint ; tail
wedge-shaped, and rather long, about three-quarters of the
length of the wing, and composed of eighteen feathers ; first
flight-feather about equal to the eighth or ninth, the fourth
slightly the longest.
The sexes are similar in plumage, but the male is armed
with a stout spur on each leg.
Only two species of these large Grouse-like Pheasants, or
.-ather Partridges, are known from the mountains of Tibet
and Western China. Few collections contain examples of
these rare birds, and very little is known about their habits.
I. THE DUSKY PHEASANT-GROUSE. TETRAOPHASIS OBSCURUS.
Lophophorus obscurus, Verr. N. Arch. Mus. Bull. v. p. ^t^., pi. vi.
(1869).
82 ALLEN'S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
Tetraophasis obscurus, Elliot, Monogr. Phas. i. pi. xxi. (1871) ;
Prjev. in Rowley's Orn. Misc. ii. p. 429 (1877) ; Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 102 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Above mostly dull olive-brown, barred
with buff on the wings ; below grey spotted with black, shad-
ing into buff on the belly. Distinguished by having the chin,
throat, and fore-part of neck dark chestnut. The male measures :
Total length, i8'6 inches; wing, 8-3; tail, 6-3; tarsus, 2-2. The
female is rather smaller.
Range. — Eastern Til)et, ranging from Moupin to Koko-nor
and the mountains of Kansu.
Habits. — Prjevalsky gives the following account of the Dusky
Pheasant-Grouse : " We found T. obscurus in the same locali-
ties in Kansu as the preceding species (the Tibetan Snow
Cock), only at a comparatively lower altitude. It was first dis-
covered by Abbe David in Si-chuani (Sze-chuen), and belongs to
the middle mountain-ranges, where it principally keeps to the
wooded and bush-covered rocks and ravines. Early in spring
(about March) they commence pairing, and from that time their
voice can be heard daily. It is similar to that of CrossoptUoji
auritum (the Eared Pheasant), being, however, more varied
and longer-lasting. The male and female call at the same
time, running side by side, with the tail erected and wings
dropped. The spreading of the tail is very characteristic ; it
is like a fan when erected. And this is done also when the
bird is surprised or runs in order to avoid danger. When
open, the tail is brownish-black, with a distinctly marked white
band.
" Like Crossoptilon auritum^ the present species does not call
much, and its voice can be heard only four or five times at
certain intervals, but always (or, rather, usually) in the morn-
ing at sunrise ; and as soon as one pair commences calling,
others answer.
" When flushed, T. obscurus m\Xq,x^ a loud cry, but does not fly
THE SNOW-COCKS. 83
f.u ; and when disturbed in bushes, it ahvays attempts to escape
by running. Shooting these birds is extremely difficult."
Nest. — According to the statements of natives, the nest is
constructed of grass, on the ground, under thick bushes.
Eggs. — Number unknown ; but one lot of four incubated, and
another of three fresh, eggs were obtained by a native sports-
man for Prjevalsky. The eggs are yellowish-grey or dirty grey,
marked with brown spots, which are thickest on the smaller
end.
II. SZECHENYl'S PHEASANT GROUSE. TETRAOPHASIS
SZECHENYII.
Tetraopliasis szechenyii^ Madarasz, Zeitschr. ges. Orn. ii. p. 50,
pi. ii. (1885); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
103 (1893).
Tetraophasis desgodi?isi\ Oustalet, Le Nat. 1886, p. 276.
Adult Male and Female. — Distinguished by having the chin,
throat, and fore-part of the neck pale fawn-colour. The male
measures: Total length, iy6 inches; wing, 8-9; tail, 6-i;
tarsus, 2*2. The female is slightly smaller.
Range. — Mountains of Central Tibet, extending north to the
Sok Pass, east to Ta-tsien-loil, and south to Yer-ka-lo, Mekong
River.
THE SNOW-COCKS. GENUS TETRAOGALLUS.
Tetraogallus, J. E. Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. ii. pi. 46 (1833).
Type, T. himalayoisis, J. E. Gray.
Feathers on the feet scarcely extending below the tarsal
joint ; tail composed of twenty or twenty-two feathers, rather
long, five-eighths of the length of the wing, rounded, the outer
pair of feathers being about two inches shorter than the middle
pair ; first flight-feather about equal to the fifth ; an elongate
naked patch behind the eye. The feet of the male are pro-
vided with a pair of stout spurs.
The six species included in the genus are all large Alpine
G 2
84 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
birds, the larger forms approaching the Capercailzies {Tetrao-
gallus) in size, some males attaining a weight of six and a half
pounds.
I. THE TIBETAN SNOW-COCK. TETRAOGALLUS
TIBETANUS.
Tetraogalliis tibetanus, Gould, P. Z. S. 1853, p. 47; id. B.
Asia, vii. pi. 32 (1853); Prjev. in Rowley's Orn. Misc. ii.
p. 427 (1877) ; Hume and Marshall, Game Birds of India,
i. P- 275, pi. (1878); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. 104 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — General colour above dark grey and
buff; below white, striped with black. Distinguished by having
no white on the basal half of the outer quills; chest white, divided
from the breast by a grey band. Bill orange-red ; feet coral-red
Total length, 20 inches; wing, io'8 ; tail, 6*2 ; tarsus, 2 "5.
Range. — Tibet, ranging east to the Sauju Pass, Eastern
Turkestan; west to Moupin, north to Kansu and Koko-nor,
and south to the Himalayas.
Habits. — In the Himalayas the Tibetan Snow-Cock (known
among the Kirghiz as "Utar") appears to be found at elevations
of from 15,000 to 19,000 feet, though in the more northern
parts of its range, such as Koko-nor, it is met with lower down.
The best account of this species is given by Prjevalsky : "Like
C. c/iJikar, this species is a quick and lively bird ; and its voice
can almost daily be heard (in north Tibet), at least in spring
and summer, in the midst of the wildest and most desolate
parts of the mountains. In the middle of the day, how-
ever, from about eleven to three o'clock, they do not call,
but usually rest ; in the morning they begin long before sun-
rise
" In winter they keep in small flocks up to fifteen indivi-
duals ; and in April, or even earlier, they commence pairing.
" The number of young belonging to a nest varies from
five to ten ; and we found young ones early in August. They
THE SNOW-COCKS. 85
were very small, about the size of a Quail, whilst others were
quite as large as their parents
"Both parent birds accompany the brood. Whilst the
young are small, they crouch on the approach of danger, cr
try to hide themselves between the loose stones, whilst the
old ones keep on running within about twenty paces from the
sportsman; but when they are full grown, they try to escape by
running, and follow the cock and hen which are leading the
whole flock. When much pressed, however, they fly, and do
not alight on the ground again until they have crossed a ravine
or valley.
"These birds are very wild, and, when alone, the old birds
do not allow themselves to be approached within a hundred
paces. They hide themselves between stones, and usually
spring up and take to flight, or else try to run, which they do
so fast that a man cannot catch them.
"We noticed that when they are approached from the
bottom of a hill they commence running, but if from the top
they at once get up.
"When settling on the ground they shake their tails several
times, just as our Willow Grouse do."
Nest and Eggs. — Little or nothing is known. Prjevalsky found
a nest containing broken shells, which he believed were evidently
of this species. He describes them as " larger than those of
the common hen, of a dirty white, shaded with green, and
marked on the smaller end with blackish-brown spots."
II. PRINCE henry's snow-cock. TETRAOGALLUS
HENRICI.
Tetraogallus hennci, Oustalet, Ann. Sci. Nat (7), xii. pp. 295,
313 (1891); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. io6
(1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Said to differ from T. tibetaniis
in having the colour of the throat and chest grey, with only a
86 Allen's naturalist's library.
narrow white band down the middle of the chin and upper
half of the throat, and the upper tail-coverts yellowish-grey, not
rufous. Total length, 26'4 inches; wing, 1 1 ; tail, 7*2 ; tarsus, 2*2.
I have not examined the typical examples of this species,
but I think it very probable that they will prove to be merely
younger examples of T. tibetanns, which agree closely with the
above description. The difference in size is probably due to
individual differences in the mode of measuring and to the
"make" of the skins, which have perhaps been unnaturally
stretched.
III. THE ALTAI SNOW-COCK. TETRAOGALLUS ALTAICUS.
Perdix aliaiciis, Gebler, Bull. wSci. Acad. St. Petersb. i. p. 31
(1S37); iv. p. 30 (1840).
Tetraogallus altaicus^ (iray, P. Z. S. 1842, p. 105; Gould, B.
Asia, vii. pi. 31 (1853); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. no (1893).
{Plate IX.)
Adult Male and Female. — Easily recognised from T. tibetanus
by having the sides of the neck grey, and the basal part of the
outer (primary) flight-feathers white, but there is no white at
the base of the secondaries ; from the other species it may be
distinguished by its white under-parts and the feathers of the
sides being uniform white. Bill blackish horn-colour ; feet
orange-red.
Male : Total length, 23 inches ; wing, 10-9 ; tail, G'S ; tarsus,
2*4. T\\Qfe/nak\s slightly smaller.
Range. — Higher chains of the Altai Mountains.
IV. THE HIMALAYAN SNOW-COCK. TETRAOGALLUS
HIMALAYENSIS.
Tetraogallus himalayensis^ Gray, P. Z. S. 1842, p. 105 ; Gould,
B. Asia, vii. pi. 30 (1853); Hume and Marshall, Game
Birds of India, i. p. 267, pi. (1878); Gates, ed. Hume's
Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 46 (1890); Ogilvie-Grant,
Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 106 (1893).
t /
PLATE IX
>\y^
•s^; //
%.
1/
ALTAI SNOW-PHEASAI-TT .
.;«rox««J-
%
THE SNOW-COCKS. 87
Adult Male and Female. — (ieneral colour ab(jvo grey and buff;
throat white, divided by a dark chestnut band from the upper
breast, which is white, barred with black ; rest of under-parts
dark grey ; a large chestnut patch on each side of the na[)e.
Basal two-thirds of the outer (primary) flight-feathers white, but
the inner (secondary) flight-feathers with only traces of white
at the base of the shaft.
Male: Total length, 25*5 inches; wing, i2"6; tail, yS; tar-
sus, 2-8.
Female: Total length, 22*5 inches; wing, 108; tail, 6*8;
tarsus, 2 '5.
Range. — Higher ranges of the Himalayas, extending west to
the Hindu Kush and northwards through the Altai Mountains.
Habits. — The following is extracted from Mr. Wilson's account
of the Himalayan Snow-Cock, or Snow Pheasant, known as the
"Jer-moonal" in the Hills north of Masuri. "It is confined
exclusively to the snowy ranges, or the large spurs jutting from
them which are elevated above the limits of forest, but is
driven by the snows of winter to perform one, and in some
places two, annual migrations to the middle regions; in
summer they are only seen near the limits of vegetation. In
Kunawar they are common at all seasons from Cheenee
upwards, but on the Gangetic hills, from June till August,
however much a person wanders about on the highest access-
ible places, but few are met with, and I have no doubt what-
ever but that nearly all those, which at other seasons frequent
this part, retire across the snow into Chinese Tibet to breed.
About the beginning of September they are first seen near
the tops of the higher grassy ridges, jutting from the snow and
the green slopes above, and about the limits of forest. After
the first general and severe fall of snow they come down in
numbers on to some of the bare exposed hills in the forest
regions, and remain there till the end of March. This partial
migration is probably made in the night after the fall of snow,
88 Allen's naturalist's library.
as I have invariably found them in their winter quarters early
the next morning. It requires a deep fall to drive them down,
and in some mild winters, except a few odd birds, they do not
come at all. The birds on each respective hill seem to have
a particular spot for their winter resort, which they return to,
every year the nn"gration is made.
"The Snow Pheasant is gregarious, congregating in packs,
sometimes to the number of twenty or thirty, but in general not
more than from five to ten ; several packs inhabiting the same
hill. In summer the few which remain on our side are found
in single pairs generally, but across the snow, where the great
body migrate, I almost always, even then, found several to-
gether. They seldom leave the hill on which they are located,
but fly backwards and forwards when disturbed
"The Jer-moonal never enters forests or jungle, and avoids
spots where the grass is long, or where there is underwood of
any kind. It is needless to add that it never perches. During
the day, if the weather be fine and warm, they sit on the rocks
or rugged parts of the hill without moving much about, except
in the morning and evening. When cold and cloudy, and in
rainy weather, they are very brisk, and are moving about and
feeding all day long. When feeding, they walk slowly uphill,
picking up the tender blades of grass and young shoots of
plants, occasionally stopping to scratch up a certain bulbous
root, of which they seem very fond. If they reach the summit
of the hill, after remaining stationary some time, they fly off
to another quarter, alighting some distance down, and again
picking their way upwards. When walking, they erect their
tails, have a rather ungainly gait, and at a little distance have
something the appearance of a large Grey Goose. . . .
"The Jer-moonal is not remarkably wild or shy. When
approached from below, on a person getting within eighty or
a hundred yards, they move slowly uphill or slanting across,
often turning to look back, and do not go very far unless fol-
lowed. If approached from above, they fly off at once, with-
THE SNOW-COCKS. 89
out walking many yards from the spot. They seldom, in any
situation, walk far downhill, and never run exeept for a few
yards when about to take wing."
Nest. — A hole scratched in the ground, under the shelter of a
stone, rock, or bush, at elevations of from 12,000 to 17,500
feet.
Eggs. — Five in number generally, but said to be as many as
nine and even twelve. In shape a long perfect oval ; shell
minutely pitted with pores ; olive or brownish stone-colour,
with numerous spots and dots, and sometimes small blotches
of reddish- or purplish-brown. Average measurements, 272
by I "8 5 inches.
V. THE CASPIAN SNOW-COCK. TETRAOGALLUS CASPIUS.
Tetrao caspius, Gmel. Reise, iv. p. 67, pi. 10 (1784).
Tetraogallus caspius, Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 29 (1853) ; Sclat.
in Wolf's Zool. Sketches (i), pi. 40 (1861) ; Ogilvie-Grant,
Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii, p. 108 (1893).
Megaloperdix raddei, Bolle and Brehm, J. f. O. 1873, P- 4-
Tetraogallus challayei, Oustal. Bull. Soc. Philom. 1875, P- 54-
Tetraogallus fauricus, Dresser, P. Z. S. 1876, p. 675.
Adult Male — Like T. liimalayensis, but paler in its general
colour, and easily distinguished by the grey chest, the absence
of chestnut on the sides of the nape and head, and by having
the basal part of the inner (secondary) flight-feathers white.
Total length, 24 inches; wing, 11 '5; tail, 7-5 ; tarsus, 2-6.
Adult Female. — Differs in having the grey feathers of the chest
mottled with buff. Total length, 23 inches; wing, 11; tail,
6-9 ; tarsus, 2-3.
Range. — Mountains of Asia Minor, ranging west of the Gok
Mountains, east to Transcaspia, north to the Caucasus, and
south to the higher ranges near Shiraz, S. Persia.*
* Possibly the bird from S. Persia may be different. Mr. Hume thinks it
may prove to be T. himalayensis.
90 ALLEN'S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
VI. THE CAUCASIAN SNOW-COCK. TETRAOGALLUS CAUCASICUS.
Tetrao caucasica^ Pall. Zoogr. Ross. -As. ii. pp. 76, 87 (note),
pi. (181 1).
Choiirtka alpijui, Motschoulski, Bull. See, Mosc. No. i. p. 95,
pis. viii. viii. bis and ix. (1839.)
TetnwgaUus Cimcasicus^ March, Rev. Zool. 1877, p. 354, pi. 133 ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 109 (1893).
Megaloperdix cancasica, Radde, Orn. Caucas. p. 335, pi. xxi.
figs. I and 2 (1884).
Adult Male and Female. — Resemble T. caspius in general plum-
age, but the back of the head and nape are rust-red, and there
is a dull chocolate band down each side of the throat ; the
whole upper back is barred and mottled with black and buff,
and the chest is blackish-grey, irregularly barred and mottled
with buff. Total length, 21 inches; wing, io"8; tail, 6*8 ; tar-
sus, 2*4,
Range. — Higher ranges of the Caucasus Mountains.
THE RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGES. GENUS CACCABIS.
Caccabis, Kaup, NatLirl. Syst. p. 183 (1829).
Type, C. saxatilis (Wolf and Meyer).
The feathers on the feet scarcely extending below the tarsal
joint ; tail composed of fourteen feathers, somewhat rounded,
and five-eighths of the length of the wing ; first flight-feather
about equal to the sixth, third slightly the longest ; throat
covered with feathers ; sub-terminal part of the outer webs of
the outer (primary) flight-feathers buff ; sides and flanks trans-
versely barred^ in marked contrast to the rest of the plumage
of the under-parts. Sexes similar. Male provided with a pair,
or sometimes more, of stout blunt spurs.
I. THE ROCK RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE. CACCABIS SAXATILIS.
Perdix saxatilis^ Wolf and Meyer, Hist. Nat. Ois. AUem. p.
87, pi. 48 (1805); Gould, B. Europe, iv. pi. 261, fig. 2
(1837); Gigl. Iconogr. Av. Ital. pi. 252 (1881).
THE RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGES. 9 1
Ciurabis sa.xatiiis, Dresser, B. Europe, vii. p. 93, pi. 470 (1875) ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. iii. (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Above greyish olive brown ; breast
grey ; belly pale rufous-buff; outer tail-feathers dark chestnut ;
top of the head dull vinaceous-grey ; white throat and fore-
neck surrounded by a black band ; feathers of the chest uni-
form, not margined with black on the sides ; lores black: ear-
coverts black, mixed with buff.
Male: Total length, 15 inches; wing, 6"6; tail, t^'G; tarsus,
1-8.
Female: Total length, i3"6 ; wing, 6-2; tail, 3*4; tarsus,
17.
Range. — Mountains of Southern Europe. Eastern Pyrenees,
Alps, Carpathians, Apennines, and Balkans; also Sicily. It still
remains uncertain whether it is this species or the closely allied
form, C. chukar, which is found in the mainland of Greece ; it
is certainly the latter which is met with in the Grecian Archi-
pelago, but so far I have been unable to obtain examples of
the mainland bird.
Hybrids. — Crosses have been described between this species
and the Barbary Red-legged Partridge (C petrosa) ; and also
with the Common Red-legged Partridge (C. rufa).
Habits. — This species inhabits the desolate stony hillsides,
and its mode of life and habits are very similar to those of its
eastern ally, the Chukar, w^iich are fully described below.
Professor Victor Fatio records a curious variety of this
species, with a black head. For this bird, of which he has
seen three examples from Switzerland, he proposes the name
of C. saxatilis, var. jnelaiiocephaliis {nee Riipp.).
SUB-SP. a. THE CHUKAR RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE. CACCABIS
CHUKAR.
Perdix chitcar, J. E. Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. i. pi. 54 (1830-32);
Gould, Cent. B. Himal. pi. 71 (1832).
92 ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
Caccabis chiikar, G. R. Gray, List of B. pt. iii. Gall. p. 36
(1844); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 113
(1893).
Caccabis chukor, Hume and Marshall, Game Birds of India,
ii. p. 34, pi. (1879); Gates, ed. Hume's Nests and Eggs
Ind. B. iii. p. 431 (1890).
Adult Male and Female. — Closely resemble the western form, C.
saxatilis, but always differ in having the lores, or space im-
mediately behind and below the nostril scale, white or whitish-
buff instead of black,* and the ear-coverts chestnut.
Male: Total length, i4'6 inches; wing, 67 ; tail, 3*9; tar-
sus, 1*9.
Female: Total length, i3"4 inches; wing, 65; tail, 3-8;
tarsus, 1-8.
Range. — Asia, extending in the west to the Ionian Islands
[and possibly the mainland of Greece], in the east to China,
in the north to Mongolia and Turkestan, and in the south to
the Persian Gulf and possibly to Arabia. Island of St. Helena
[introduced].
This bird varies immensely in size and colour in different
localities, but all the various forms pass imperceptibly into one
another and must be regarded as mere climatic varieties ot
the same sub-species. The lightest coloured birds in all the
large series I have examined come from the arid neighbour-
hood of Bushire at the head of the Persian Gulf. Somewhat
darker forms occur at Bagdad and Shiraz, in Afghanistan, Sind,
Ladak, and other localities where the physical surroundings are
somewhat similar in character, while the darkest and most
richly-coloured examples are those from the Ionian Islands,
Cyprus, Asia Minor, and the outer Himalayas, where vegetation
is more plentiful. In birds from North China, the upper-parts of
the body have a more reddish tint, but specimens from northern
* It must however be noted that some specimens of C. chnkar have a
very small spot of black feathers below the nasal opening, thus approach-
ing C. saxatilis.
THE RED-LEGCtED PARTRIDGES. 93
Afghanistan and several other localities approach them closely
in colour.
Mr. Hume says : " The Chukor may be found in different
localities from sea-level, as in Southern Sind and Beluchi-
stan, to an elevation of at least 16,000 feet, as in Ladak and
Tibet
" It will be found in comparatively well wooded, watered,
and cultivated hills, as throughout the lower, southern, or outer
ranges of the Himalayas ; in absolute deserts, hke those of
Ladak and the Karakoram plateaux; or in utterly barren
rocky ranges, like those of the Mekran and Arabian coasts,
where the abomination of desolation seems to reign enshrined.
"In one place it faces a noon-day temperature of 150° Fahr.;
in another, braves a cold, about daybreak, little above zero ;
here it thrives where the annual rainfall exceeds 100 inches,
and there flourishes where it is practically ;///. But all these
differences in physical environment affect appreciably the size
and colour of the species ; and hence the numerous races
which, under a variety of names (mpicola, altaica^ sijiaica.
pallescens^ pubescejis," arenarius^ pallidus^ ^c^^ have been at one
time or another elevated to the rank of species
" The Chukor is a very noisy bird, repeating constantly in a
sharp, clear tone, that may be heard for a mile or more
through the pure mountain air, his own well-applied trivial
name. Like other Game-Birds, they call most in the mornings
and evenings ; but even when undisturbed, they may be heard
calling to each other at all hours of the day ; and very soon
after a covey has been dispersed, each individual member may
be heard proclaiming his own, and anxiously enquiring after
all his fellows' whereabouts. The tone varies. First he says,
T'm here, I'm here'; then he asks, ' Who's dead? Who's dead?';
and when he is informed of the untimely decease of his pet
brother and favourite sister, or perhaps his eldest son and
heir, he responds, ' Oh lor ! Oh lor ! ' in quite a mournful
tone."
94 Allen's naturalist's library.
The following account of its habits are given by Mr.
Wilson.
"In our part of the hills the Chukor is most numerous
in the higher inhabited districts, but is found scattered over
all the lower and middle ranges. In summer they spread
themselves over the grassy hills to breed, and about the middle
of September begin to assemble in and around the cultivated
fields near the villages, gleaning at first in the grain-fields
which have been reaped, and afterwards, during winter, in
those which have been sown with wheat and barley for the en-
suing season, preferring the wheat. A few straggling parties
remain on the hillsides, where they breed, as also in summer
many remain to perform the business of incubation in the
fields. In autumn and winter they keep in loose scattered
flocks, where numerous, sometimes to the number of forty or
fifty, or even a hundred. In summer, though not entirely
separated, they are seldom in large flocks, and a single pair is
often met with. They are partial to dry, stony spots, never go
into forest, and in the lower hills seem to prefer the grassy
hillsides to the cultivated fields. This may probably be
owing to their comparatively fewer numbers, as I have ob-
served that many others of the feathered race are much shyer
and more suspicious of Man when rare, than those of the same
species in places where more numerous
^' The Chukor feeds on grain, roots, seeds, and berries ;
when caught young it soon becomes tame, and will associate
readily with domestic poultry.
"From the beginning of October, Chukor-shooting, from
the frequency and variety of the shots, and the small amount
of fatigue attending it, is, to one partial to such sport, perhaps
the most pleasant of anything of the kind in the hills. About
some of the higher villages, ten or a dozen brace may be
bagged in a few hours. Dogs may be used or not, at the dis-
cretion of the sportsman ; they are not necessary, and if at all
wild, are more in the way than otherwise."
THE RED-LEOOED PARTRIDGES. gK
Nest. — Composed of leaves and fibres, placed in a depression
in the ground, and generally sheltered by a tuft of grass or low
bush; may be met with in different localities from the sea-level
up to an elevation of 16,000 feet.
Eggs. — Generally seven to twelve in number, sometimes more;
somewhat sharply pointed. The ground-colour varies from
yellowish- white to brownish-cream, thickly speckled and spotted
with purplish or reddish-brown. Average measurements, i-68
by 1-25 inch.
II. PRJEVALSKV'S RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE. CACCARIS MAGNA.
Caccahis magna, Prjev. in Rowley's Orn. Misc. ii. p. 426 (1877);
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 120 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Differ from C. saxn/ilis in their paler
colour and larger size, and in having the collar round the base
of the neck double, inside blackish or black, on the outside red-
dish-brown. Total length, 15 inches; wing, 7-6; tail, 4-1 ; tar-
sus, 17.
Range. — Mountains of South Koko-nor, Northern Tibet, and
the Tsaidam Plains.
HaMts. — This remarkable and perfectly distinct "Red-leg"
was first obtained by the great Russian traveller, Prjevalsky,
who makes the following remarks on its habits. He says : — "We
first obtained this bird in the most desolate parts of South
Koko-nor Mountains ; and later on we met with it also in
Northern Tibet and the Tsaidam Plains. In its habits it does
not differ from C. chuluir, and keeps usually in small companies
(probably families) on the rocky mountains and in the neigh-
bourhood.
"When taking wing it utters a peculiar hollow note, some-
thing like ' cuta-cuia,' which we never noticed in C. chukar,
and the present species seems to be more silent than the pre-
ceding one."
g6 Allen's naturalist's library.
III. THE COMMON RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE. CACCABIS RUFA.
Tetrao rufiis^ Linn. S. N. i. p. 276 (1766).
Perdix rubra, Gould, B. Europe, iv. pi. 260 (1837).
Caccabis rufa, Dresser, B, Europe, vii. p. 103, pi. 471, fig. i
(1875); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 118
(1893).
{Plate X)
Adult Male and Female. — Resemble C. saxafilis in general
appearance, but are darker and more richly coloured. In addi-
tion to the black band which circumscribes the throat, the
feathers of the chest are widely viargi?ied ofi the sides with black,
those of the sides and back of the neck more narrowly ; the
belly is bright rufous-buff and the outer tail-feathers are dark
chestnut.
Male: Total length, 13-6 inches ; wing, 6*2 ; tail, 37 ; tar-
sus, 17.
Female: Total length, 13 inches; wing, 6; tail, 3"6 ; tar-
sus, i'6.
Range. — South-western Europe ; ranging in the north to
Belgium and Switzerland ; in the south to Madeira, the Azores,
and Gran Canary ; in the west to North and Central Italy. It
is also found in Elba, Corsica, the Balearic Islands, and in
Great Britain [introduced].
In Spain a somewhat darker and more richly coloured
climatic variety of C. rufa is met with, which has been named
Caccabis rufa hispauica by Prof. Seoane. This form is figured
in the accompanying plate.
Hal)its. — This remarkably handsome species was first intro-
duced into the south-eastern counties of Great Britain about a
century ago Like the rest of its allies, it is an inveterate
runner, and generally prefers to escape from approaching
danger on foot, which it does with great rapidity, seldom taking
to flight unless hard pressed or suddenly disturbed. When
once on the wing, however, the flight is rapid and straight, and
PLATE X.
'"""t^.
I \
SPANISH RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE.
THE RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGES. 97
for this reason these birds afford capital sport when driven ;
but if shot over dogs or walked up in cover their cursorial
habits are alike detestable to Man and Dog, for the Red-legs
not only seldom rise themselves till they are at the other end
of the field and probably far out of shot, but disturb and put up
any coveys of Grey Partridges they may chance to pass on their
course. They are very partial to hedgerows or the edges of
plantations and long grass or rushes, and when flushed, occa-
sionally perch on a neighbouring tree, which the Grey Partridge,
so far as we are aware, never does. In the pairing-season the
Red-legs are very pugnacious, fighting fiercely not only with
the males of their own kind, but also with those of the Grey
Partridge, which, being much smaller birds, are in most cases
driven from the field. Eggs of the latter species, as well as
those of the Common Pheasant, are sometimes found in the
nests of C. riifa^ and are doubtless laid there by the females
instead of in their own nest, an irregular habit by no means
rare among Game-Birds.
Nest. — A hollow scratched in the ground under the shelter
of a hedge, tall grass, or growing crops.
Eggs. — Ten to eighteen in number, and sometimes more.
Like those of C. saxatilis and C. chukar^ pale stone-colour
or buff, more or less thickly dotted and spotted, and s )metimes
blotched with dark reddish-brown. Average measurements,
1*55 by 1-2 inch.
IV. BARBARY RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE. CACCABIS PETROSA.
Teirao petrosals, Gm. S. N. i. pt. ii. p. 758 (1788).
Perdix petrosa, Lath. Lid. Orn. ii, p. 648 (1790); Gould, B.
Europe, iv. pi. 261, fig. i (1837).
Perdix Barbara, Bonn. Tabl. Encycl. Meth. i. p. 208, pi. 94,
fig. 2 (1791)-
Caccalns petrosa, Dresser, B. Europe, vii. p. iii, pi. 471, fig. 2
(1875); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 120
(1893).
9 H
98 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
Adult Male and Female. — Easily recognised from the species
already mentioned by having the top of the head dark chest-
nut, a wide chestnut collar spotted with white bordering the
sides and front of the neck ; and the outer scapulars bordered
with rufous-chestnut instead of vinaceous or grey.
Male: Total length, 12-5 inches; wing, 6*5 ; tail, 4*1 ; tar-
sus, 1-8.
Female: Smaller; wing, 6*i.
Range. — This extremely handsome species has a comparatively
limited range, being found in North-west Africa, Sardinia, near
Gibraltar, and in some of the islands of the Canary group. In
both the last-named localities it has doubtless been introduced.
Specimens have been obtained in Malta, but whether such ex-
amples are escaped cage-birds or accidental migrants is uncer-
tain.
Eggs. — Similar to those of C. nifa, but the ground-colour is
usually more rufous.
V. THE BLACK-HEADED RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE. CACCABIS
MELANOCEPHALA.
Perdix inelanocephala^ Riipp. Neue Wirb. Vog. p. 11, pi. v.
(1835).
Caccabis Tnelanocephala, Gray, Gen. B. iii. p. 508 (1846); Yer-
bury, Ibis, 1886, p. 19 ; Barnes, Ibis, 1893, p. 166 ; Ogil-
vie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 122 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — General colour slaty-grey, shading
into buff on the under-parts. Top of the head black; a wide
black band surrounding the throat and continued down the
middle of the neck ; outer tail-feathers grey.
Male: Total length, i6'6 inches ; wing, 77 ; tail, 57 ; tar-
sus, 22*5.
T\iQ female is somewhat smaller; wing, 7*2.
Range. — South-west Arabia, Jeddah, and Mecca, to Aden.
Habits. — Very little is known about the habits of this fine
THE SEESEE PARTRIDGES. 99
Red-leg, considerably the largest species of the group. Lieut.
Barnes, writing from Aden, says that it "is common in the
ravines at the base of the hills, some distance inland. They
also frequent the clayey cliffs along the river banks, especially
near pools of water, the river-bed being generally dry."
THE SEESEE PARTRIDGES. GENUS AMMOPERDIX.
Ammoperdix, Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. i (part iii. ; 1851).
Type, A. bonhami (Fraser).
The feathers on the feet scarcely extending below the tarsal
joint; tail composed of twelve feathers^ somewhat rounded, but
the feathers sub-equal, and about half the length of the wing ;
first flight-feather about equal to the sixth, and not much shorter
than the third and longest; bill yellowish; no space behind the
eye or on the cheeks ; throat covered with feathers ; flanks of
the male lofigitudinally barred^ in marked contrast to the rest
of the plumage of the under-parts. Sexes different. No trace
of spurs in either sex.
Only two rather small species are known.
I. BONHAM'S SEESEE PARTRIDGE. AMMOPERDIX BONHAMI.
Perdix bonhami^ Fraser, P. Z. S. 1843, p. 70.
Caccahis bonhami^ Fraser, Zool. Typ. pt. 3, pi. 61 (1849).
Perdix griseogularis^ Brandt, Bull. Ac. St. Petersb. i. p. 365
(1843)-
Ammoperdix bonhami, Gould, B. Asia, vii.pl. i (185 1); Hume
and Marshall, Game Birds of India, ii. p. 45, pi. (1879.) ;
Dresser, B. Europe, vii. p. 117, pi. 472 (1880) ; Gates, ed.
Hume's Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 433 (1890) ; Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit, Mus. xxii. p. 123 (1893).
Adult Male. — General colour isabelline ; a black band across
the forehead, continued backwards in eyebrow stripes ; chin
whitish ; cheeks, throat, and front of neck grey ; flank-feathers
vinaceous and chestnut, margined on either side with black.
Total length, 9-5 inches; wing, 5-2 ; tail, 2*4; tarsus, i'2.
H 2
lOO ALLENS NATURALIST'S LIBRARY.
Adult Female. — Differs chiefly from the male in having the
black and white markings on the head and the barring on the
flanks absent. Total length, 9-5 inches ; wing, 4*9 ; tail, 2-3 j
tarsus, I* 15.
Range. — South-western Asia, extending westwards to the
Euphrates Valley, eastwards to North-west India, in the north
to Transcaspia, and south to Aden.
HalDits. — This handsome little Partridge is met with at eleva-
tions ranging from sea-level to 6,000 or 7,000 feet. They are
particularly common in the Salt Range, and Mr. Hume gives us
the following account of their habits : "They are eminently birds
of bare broken ground ; on grassy slopes they may indeed be
found, for they feed much on grass-seeds, but they eschew
utterly forests or thickly-wooded tracts, and even where there
is much scrub about they are less common— the barer and more
desolate the ravines and gorges, the more thoroughly do they
seem at home.
" They are active, bustling little birds, scratching about a
■great deal in the earth, dusting themselves freely in the sand,
basking in the sun, resting in little hollows they have worked
out for themselves, and generally reproducing in many ways
the manners of the Domestic Fowl.
"Their call, continually heard in the spring, is a clear double
note, "Soo-see, soo-see," and they have also, whilst feeding
and when surprised, a whistled chirp, uttered very softly when
at their ease, but sounding more harshly when they are
alarmed.
" Their food is, I think, chiefly, if not exclusively, grain, seeds,
and herbage of different kinds. I have examined many, but
have lost my notes in regard to them, and I cannot now re-
member whether they are or are not also insectivorous. My
impression is that they are not.
" Although they are pretty shooting, they never afford much
sport ; they run a great deal, and over ground across which it
THE FRANCOLINS, lOI
is difficult to follow them ; it is often difficult to flush them,
and when flushed they constantly rise so little, and dart so
directly downhill, that they are lost sight of before it is possi-
ble to fire."
Nest. — Very slight ; a few blades of dry grass laid in a depres-
sion in the ground under a bush or a ledge of rock or among
stones.
Eggs. — Vary in number from eight to fourteen, and sometimes
more are laid ; lengthened ovals, generally somewhat pointed
towards one end. The colour varies from nearly white to stone-
cream ; shell somewhat glossed and minutely pitted. Average
measurements, 1*42 by 1*02 inch.
II. key's seesee partridge, ammoperdix heyi.
Perdix heyi, Temm. PI. Col. v. pis. 37, :^^ [Nos. 328, 329]
(1825).
Caccabis heyii, Gray, List Gall. Brit. Mus. p. 37 (1844) ; Wyatt,
Mamm. and Avif. Sinai, pi. xix. (1873).
Ammoperdix heyi, Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 2 (1851); Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 125 (1893).
Adult Male. — Differs chiefly from the male of A. bonhajiii in
having the general colour of the upper-parts much paler ; no
black band across the forehead or above the eyes ; the chin
and middle of throat chestnut. Total length, 9*5 inches;
wing, 5; tail, 2-5; tarsus, 1-25.
Adult Female. — Resembles the female of A. bonhami.
Range. — Both sides of the Red Sea, extending north to the
Dead Sea, westwards to Egypt and Nubia, about as far south
as 20° N. latitude, and eastwards to Muscat, Persian Gulf.
THE FRANCOLINS. GENUS FRANCOLINUS.
Francolinus, Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xi. pt. ii. p. 316
(.819).
Type, F. franco hims (Linn.).
The feathers of the feet scarcely extend below the tarsal
I02 Allen's naturalist's library.
joint ; tail composed of fourteen feathers, half the length of
the wing, or rather more ; first flight-feather varying in length
between the seventh and tenth*; the fourth to the sixth forming
the angle of the wing ; throat covered with feathers ; plumage
of the flanks not barred, or, if barred, not contrasting with the
rest of the under-parts. Sexes usually similar, or nearly similar,
in plumage, but in a few species extremely different. Feet with-
out spurs, or with one or more pairs. +
Although certain of the large number of species forming
the various groups of this genus differ considerably from one
another in several important points, and have in consequence
received a variety of generic or sub-generic names, I have
so far found it impossible to divide the genus Francolimis into
minor sections, the less highly characterised species forming
intermediate links which prevent any of the proposed divisions
from being satisfactorily characterised.
To assist in the identification of the forty-four species com-
prising this great genus, the various groups of allied forms have
been divided under several headings, characterised by promi-
nent differences in the marking of the plumage.
A. A well-defined row of rufous or buff spots on both webs
of the primary flight-feathers (species i to 3, pp. 103-107).
B. No well-defined row of rufous or buff spots on both
webs of the primary flight-feathers ; feathers of the back and
scapulars with white or buff shaft-stripes down the middle.
a. Breast and flanks whitish buff, with uniform transverse
bars of black (species 5 to 8, pp. 1 08-1 12).
b. Breast and flanks not whitish buff, barred with black
(species 9 to 26, pp. 11 2-1 2 2).
* In Francolimis sqiianiatus and F. schiietti the first flight-feather is
slightly shorter than the tenth, so that the shape of the wing is somewhat
Pheasant-like, but the shortness of the tail at once distinguishes these birds
as Perdicin(Z,
t In many of the species, the females have no spurs, but it is not un-
common to find a blunt pair developed in old birds.
THE FRANCOLINS. I03
C. No well-defined row of rufous or buff spots on both
webs of the primary flight-feathers ; feathers of the back and
scapulars devoid of white or bu(f shaft-stripes down the middle
(p. 124).
c. Inner webs of the primary flight-feathers either mostly
pale buff or brown, largely barred and mottled with
chestnut or buff (species 28 to 34, pp. 125-128).
d. Inner webs of the primary flight-feathers uniform dark
brown, sometimes slightly dotted with buff towards the
marginal extremity (species 35 to 44, pp. 129-135).
The Francolins or Spur-legged Partridges vary much in size,
some being not much larger than Quails, others rather larger
than the Red-legged Partridges.
A. The three following Asiatic species are characterised by
having a well-defined row of rufuiis or buff spots on both
webs of the primary flight feathers.
I. THE COMMON FRANCOLIN. FRANCOLINUS FRANCOLINUS.
Tetrao francolimis, Linn. S. N. i. p. 275 (1766).
Ferdix francolinus, Vieill. Faun. Frang. p. 254, pi. no, fig. 2,
and pi. iii. fig. i (1828).
Francolinus vulgaris^ Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xi. p. 319
(1819); Gould, B. Europe, iv. p. 259, pi. (1837); Dresser,
B. Europe, vii. p. 123, pi. 473 (1876}; Hume and Marshall,
Game Birds of India, ii. p. 9, pi. (1879); Gates, ed. Hume's
Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 428 (1890); Ogilvie-Grant,
Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 132 (1893).
Francolinus tristriatus^ F. henrici, and F. asice, Bonap. C. R.
xlii. p. 882 (1856).
{Plate XI.)
Adult Male. — General colour of the under-parts black, spotted
with white on the sides ; upper-back black, spotted with white ;
lower-back barred with white; a wide dark chestnut nuchal
collar; a white patch on the hinder-part of the cheek; ?-est
of head and throat black. A pair of small wart-shaped spurs.
I04 Allen's naturalist's library.
Total length, 13 inches; wing, 6; tail, 3*5; tarsus, ry (Indian
specimens). Examples from Cyprus, Asia Minor, Persia, &c.,
have larger dimensions ; wing, 6'9.
Adult Female. — Differs chiefly from the male in having the
colour of the upper-parts browner ; the sides of the face buff,
dotted with black ; the throat white ; the chestnut collar con-
fined to the nape, and the under-parts whitish-buff, more or
less strongly-marked with V-shaped black bars. Total length,
12-6 inches; wing, 5*9; tail, 3*5; tarsus, i'6 (Indian specimens).
Examples from Cyprus, &c., larger ; wing, 6*6.
Range. — From Cyprus, Palestine, and Asia Minor, through
Persia eastwards to Northern and Central India, to Assam
and southward to Manipur. Formerly found in Sicily, but
now apparently extinct. It also, no doubt, occurred in
Sardinia, Spain, and on the north-west coast of Africa, but
has long since been exterminated.
Habits. — This handsome species, also known as the Black
Partridge, or Kala titur among Indian sportsmen, is still
numerous in many parts of Upper India, and affords most
excellent shooting, being either bagged from elephants with
a close line of beaters, or shot over dogs.
Mr. Hume publishes the following notes on this species, sent
to him by Mr. O. Greig : " The Francolin is not a prolific
breeder. I hardly ever remember to have seen more than
three young ones in a brood. Probably, being a ground bird,
the young are killed by stoats, jackals, and other vermin, and
the mother is not of sufficient size to defend them. It seems
to have a second brood sometimes.
" It remains entirely on the ground, as a rule, except the
cock when calling, when he will at times get on to a stump or
ant-hill ; but up the Touse Valley, and in the Rama Serai, in
Native Garhwal, I have seen them high up in chir-trees
{Pinus lo7igifolia).
" From its breeding so slowly it is easily shot off, and I have
known a place almost cleared in one season. The Western
THE FRANCOLINS. I05
Dun has been served in that way. Formerly twenty-five
brace could be bagged there, but now, if a man flushes five
brace in a day, he has done well."
"All sportsmen who like Black Partridge shooting should
kill all vermin they see about its haunts.
"This bird gets tame readily, and, even when caught full
grown, will feed on the day it is caught. It affords some of the
finest sport of all small game, and with steady dogs one may
have grand shooting. It may be found in all crops, but
especially in cotton-fields freshly sown, wheat, rice, and mus-
tard, and in wild hemp. It runs a good deal at times, but
will lay like a stone if headed ; it is never found far from grass-
jungles.
" Some hens have spurs of the same size and shape as the
cocks.
" It is kept tame by the natives, and used for the capture of
wild ones in the breeding-season. The mode of using it is to
put it in a cage out near wild ones in the pairing-season, and to
set snares round the cage. The tame ones then call up the
wild ones; but only cocks are caught in this way, and the
tame one must be a young one reared by hand, as, if caught
when old, it will not call.
" Netting is largely used to capture this bird, and on one
occasion I wanted some birds to stock a bit of forest, and a
man caught two score of birds in a very short time.
" I never heard of this bird being used for fighting ; it is
merely kept as a call-bird or as a pet."
Nest. — Always well hidden ; often slight, sometimes more
substantial, and composed of grass, roots, and dry bamboo,
&c. ; placed in a hollow in the ground, at elevations varying
from nearly sea-level to 6,000 feet.
Eggs. — Six to ten in number, bluntly pointed at the smaller
end, and varying in colour from uniform greenish stone-colour
to rich brownish-buff. Average measurements, 1*56 by i'28
inch.
io6 Allen's naturalist's library.
II. THE painted francolin. francolinus pictus.
Perdix picta, Jard. and Selb. 111. Orn. pi. 50.
Perdix hepburnti, J. E. Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. i. pi. 55, fig. i
(1830-32).
Francolinus picius, Hume and Marshall, Game Birds of India, ii.
p. 19, pi. (1879); Legge, B.Ceylon, iii. p. 744 (1880);
Gates, ed. Hume's Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 430
(1890); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 138
(1893).
Adult Male. — Differs from the male o'i F. francolinus in having
no trace of a chestnut collar ; the forehead and sides of the
head rust-red ; the throat paler rufous, spotted with black ; the
scapulars blacky edged with buff ; the under-parts black, covered
with round white spots. Spurs entirely wanting.
Adult Female. — Very similar to the male, but the throat is
whitish and not spotted with black.
Total length, 11 -6 inches; wing, 5*3; tail 2*5 ; tarsus, 17.
Range. — Western and Central India, extending in the west to
North Guzerat, northwards to Hamirpur, and south as far as
Coimbatore on the east and Masulipatam on the west. It is
also found in Ceylon.
Habits. — This Painted Francolin is very locally distributed
over its range, and is far more arboreal in its habits than F.
francolijius, which rarely perches. It may often be met with
roosting on bushes and trees. Its favourite haunts are dry
fields studded with trees, the higher uplands covered with
scrub-jungle, or broken hilly ground, and it avoids the damper
lower-lying country where the Common Francolin is ordinarily
met with.
Hybrid. — This species is known to cross with F. francolinus,
and Colonel E. A. Butler shot six or seven such hybrids near
Deesa, a locality where the ranges of the two species meet.
For a figure of one of these hybrids see Hume and Marshall,
Game B. India, ii. p. 27, pi. fig. 2 (1879).
THE FRANCOLINS. I07
Nest and Eggs. — Very similar to those of F. fnmcolhnis^ but
larger and generally less like a peg-top in shape. Average
measurements, i'4 by it8 inch.
III. THE CHINESE FRANCOLIN. FRANCOLINUS CHINENSIS.
Tttrao chi?te?isis, Osbeck, Voy. en Chine, ii. p. 326 (1771).
"Fetrao uiadai^ascariensis and T. pi?ifadeafius, Scop. Del. Flor.
et Faun. Insubr. pt. ii. p. 93 (1786).
Tetrao periatus, Gmel. S. N. i. pt. ii. pp. 756, 758 (178S).
Fcrdix {Fra?icolimis) maculatus, Gray, Fasc. B. China, pi. 7
(1871).
Francolinus phayrei, Blyth, J. As. Soc. Beng. xii. p. ion
(1843)-
Francolimis chifieiisis, Hume and Marshall, Game Birds of
India, ii. p. 27, pi. (1879); Gates, ed. Hume's Nests and
Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 431 (1890); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B.
Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 137 (1893).
Adult Male. — Like F. pictus, this species has ?to chestmit
collar, but differs in having the scapulars chestnut, or chest-
nut and black, with rounded spots of white or buff. A black
band crosses the forehead and is continued behind the eye,
and a second, starting from the angle of the gape, crosses the
cheek ; rest of the sides of the head and tZiroat white. Feet
armed with a pair of sharp spurs.
Adult Female. — Differs from the male in having the sides of
the head washed with rufous, the scapulars black, viargiiied
ivith broiv?iish, and spotted and barred with buff, and the
under-parts buff, barred with black.
Total length, 12 '6 inches; wing, 5-5; tail, 3; tarsus, i-6.
Range. — Indo-Chinese countries, Burma, Siam, Cochin China,
Hainan, and Southern China. It is not found in Tenasserim.
It was introduced more than a century ago into Reunion and
Mauritius. ? Madagascar.
Habits. — Very similar to those of F. pictus, but it seldom
io8 Allen's naturalist's library.
visits the open country, preferring near Thayetmyo, where it
is specially numerous, the "gravel hills with bamboo-jungle,
intermingled with abandoned clearings, in the dense vegeta-
tion of which it loves to conceal itself" {Oates).
B. All the following species (Nos. 4 to 25 inclusive) are char-
acterised by having 7io well-defined row of buff spots on
the inner and outer zvebs of the primary fiight feathers^
but the feathers of the back and scapulars have ivhite
or buff shaft-stripes down the middle. The following
species otily has the throat black ; in all the rest it is
differetitly coloured.
IV. Latham's francolin. francolinus lathami.
Francolinus lathami^ Hartl. J. f. O. 1854, p. 210; Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 139 (1893).
Fra?icolinus peli, Temm. Bijdr. tot de Dierk. I. p. 50, pi.
(1854).
Adult Male. — General colour above olive-brown ; throat and
fore-neck black ; breast black, each feather with a white heart-
shaped spot. Total length, 10 inches; wing, 5'6 ; tail, 27;
tarsus, 1*7.
Adult Female. — Distinguished from the male by being some-
what smaller, and by having the upper-parts faintly and irregu-
larly barred with rufous-buff and black, and the chest-feathers
margined externally with brown.
Range West Africa, from the Loango Coast northwards to
Senegambia.
a. The three following species have the breast and flanks
whitish-buff^ uniformly barred with black.
V. THE GREY FRANCOLIN. FRANCOLINUS PONDICERIANUS.
Tetrao pondiceriamis, Gmel. S. N. i. pt. ii. p. 760 (1788).
Fra7icolinus pondicerianus, Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xi.
p. 321 (1819); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii.
p. 141 (1893).
THE FRANCOLINS. I09
Pcrdix orie?ifalis, J. E. Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. pi. 56, fig. 2
(1830-32). ^
Ortygor?tis po?idiceriafms, Hume and Marshall, Game Birds of
India, ii. p. 51, pi. (1879); Gates, ed. Hume's Nests and
Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 435 (1890).
Adult Male and Female. — General colour above a mixture of
chestnut and brown, barred with buff; below whitish-buff,
closely barred with narrow wavy black bars. The male has a
pair of sharp spurs. Total length, 12-5 inches; wing, 5*8;
tail, 3*5 ; tarsus, i-6.
Range, — South-western Asia, from Eastern Arabia and South
Persia to India and Ceylon. Amirante and Mascarene Islands
[introduced].
Habits. — From Mr. Hume's excellent account of the Grey
Partridge, as it is called in India, the following notes on its
habits are extracted : —
" Dry warm tracts, interspersed with scrub or low grass
jungle, in the neighbourhood of cultivation, are what it
specially affects, and the stunted acacia or wild date thickets
or prickly pear hedges, that so often encircle our villages, are
favourite haunts. So, too, are the hedges in some parts of the
country enclosing every field, the bush-clad banks of nallas
and broken ground, and ravines running down to rivers, more
or less thinly or thickly studded with low catechu, acacia, or
other scrub.
" Morning and evening they will be found in the fields or
pecking about on the highways and byeways, but their homes
are in the scrub, or in low thorny trees, in which many of
them, in such localities, roost, and on which they may be
found perching, at times, at almost any hour of the day.
" But provided the locality be dry and warm and the ground
broken, no want of scrub or cultivation, no lack of trees and
hedges, seems to banish them. I have shot them in the most
desolate spots near the bases of the hills in Sind and on the
TIO AI.LKN'S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
Mekran Coast, where there were no traces of vegetation at
the time, and where, in the best of seasons only, a few straggling
tufts of grass and desert plants are to be seen.
"The most noteworthy point about this species is its clear
ringing, inspiriting call kd, kd kateetur^ kateetur, which sylla-
bize it as you will (and everyone has his own rendering), once
heard, is never to be forgotten. Morning and evening the
fields and groves re-echo with their cheery cry, and, during
the spring and summer especially, it may be heard occasionally
at all hours.
" They feed on grain of all kinds, grass seeds, and insects,
especially white ants and their eggs, and on the young leaves
of mustard, peas, and other herbs. Dig open an ant's nest in
some scrub frequented by these birds, retire for ten minutes,
and the chances are that on your return you find half a dozen
Greys busy at the nest.
"They run very swiftly and gracefully; they seem to ghde
rather than run, and the native lover can pay no higher com-
pliment to his mistress than to liken her gait to that of the Part-
ridge.
" It is often difiicult to flush them, but when they rise it
is with a true Partridge ' whir ' ; and their flight is swifter and
stronger, and they will carry off more shot than our English
bird.
" In many places they are to be found in pairs, but where
they are really numerous, they often keep in regular coveys, a
dozen rising within a small space if they are in ground in which
they cannot run well."
Nest. — A slight hollow scratched out by the birds, generally
in the shelter of scrub-jungle.
Eggs, — Six to nine in number; pointed ovals in shape; white,
tinged with brownish-buff. Average measurements, 1-3 by 1-03
inch.
THE FRANCOLINS. Ill
VI. THE COQUl FRANCOLIN. FRANCOLINUS COQUI.
Perdix coqui, Smith, Rep. Exp. Centr. Afr. p. 55 (1836).
Fraficolinus sudtorquatus, Smith, 111. Zool. S. Afr. Birds, pi. 15
(1838); Sharpe, ed. Layard's B. S. Afr. p. 600 (1884).
FraiicoUnus coqui, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 143
(1893).
FrancoH?ius shihhtiaJini, Reichen. J. f. O. 1889, p. 270.
Adult Male. — Head chestnut-brown, shading into pale rufous
or whitish on the throat ; general colour of upper-parts a mix-
ture of chestnut and buff, barred with blackish or dark grey ;
back of the neck and tmder-parts white, shading into buff on the
belly, all with wide regular black bars. A pair of sharp spurs.
Total length, 11 inches; wing, 5-5; tail, 3; tarsus, 1-5.
Adult Female. — Distinguished from the male by having black
eyebrow stripes ; the throat margined by a black band ; and
the back of the neck and breast vinaceous-grey and dull chest^iut,
ivith white shaft-streaks. No spurs.
Range. — This species has a wide range, being found over
East, South, and South-west Africa.
Habits. — The habits of the Coqui Francolin are apparently
much the same in all parts of its wide range.
Mr. T. Ayres writes : " These birds live in the open country,
and are generally dispersed all over the Colony of Natal ; they
are to be found in coveys, like the Partridge in England ; they
roost on the ground in any convenient tuft of grass, and nestle
all together. These birds would be numerous were it not for
the burning of the grass, together with the hawks, wild cats, and
snakes, which abound here and are their mortal enemies." This
Francolin is extremely difficult to flush, and without the assist-
ance of dogs is consequently seldom seen. Its call-note is
shrill, but not unpleasant, and is mostly heard in the early
morning and towards evening. Like the rest of its kind, its
food consists of small bulbous roots, seeds, berries, and insects,
and its flesh is excellent.
112 ALLEN'S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
VII. HUBBARD'S FRANCOLIN. FRANCOLINUS HUBBARDI.
Francolinus hubbardt, Grant, Bull. B.O.Club, iv. p. xxvii. (1895).
Adult Male and Female. — Similar to F. coqui, but having the
entire breast uniform buff, without any black bars. Total
length, 10 inches ; wing, 5-6.
Range. — Nas^a district, Victoria Nyanza.
VIII. SCHLEGEL'S FRANCOLIN. FRANCOLINUS SCHLEGELL
Francolinus schlegelii, Heugl. J. f. O. 1863, p. 275; id. Oin.
N. O.-Afr. ii. p. 898, pi. xxx. (1873) ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat.
B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 145 (1893).
? Francolinus buckleyi, Shelley MS.; Ogilvie-Grant, Ibis, 1892,
p. 41.
Adult Male.— Differs from the male of i^ -CRESTED -WOOD -PARTRIDGE.
THE WOOD-PARTRIDGES. 177
Adult Male, — Also very closely allied to C. oculea, but the
mantle is very black and sharply defined from the chestnut of
the crown and nape, the co7iceiitric white lines are narrower
and more regular than in typical C. oculea from the Malay
Peninsula, and the throat is darker and more rufous-chestnut.
Range. — Mount Dulit, Sarawak, North Borneo.
The only known example of this extremely handsome species
was obtained by Mr. C. Hose in the month of May on the moss-
clad summit of Mount Dulit, at an elevation of 5,000 feet.
THE CRESTED WOOD-PARTRIDGES. GENUS ROLLULUS.
RolluhiSy Bonnat. Tabl. Encycl. Meth. i. Introd. p. xciii. (1790).
Type, R. roiilroul (Scop.).
A tuft of long hair-like bristles on the middle of the fore-
head.
A long full hairy crest in the male.
Tail short, soft, and rounded ; composed of twelve feathers ;
about two-fifths of the length of the wing.
First primary flight-feather equal in length to the tenth ,
fifth slightly the longest.
Claw on the hind-toe quite rudimentary.
A naked patch of skin round the eye. Sexes entirely differ-
ent in plumage. Only one species is known.
I. THE RED-CRESTED WOOD-PARTRIDGE. ROLLULUS
ROULROUL.
Phasianus roulroul^ Scop. Del. Flor. et Faun. Insubr. ii. p. 93
(1786).
Fhasianus cristatus, Sparrm. Mus. Carls, fasc. iii. pi. 64 (1788).
Tetrao viridis, Gmel. S. N. i. pt. ii. p. 761 (1788) \^female\
Tetrao porphyria, Shaw and Nodd. Nat. Misc. iii. pi. 84.
Rollulus roulroul., auctorum, passim; Hume and Marshall,
Game Birds of India, ii. p. 103, pi. (1879); Ogilvie-Grant,
Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 225 (1893).
{Plate XV.)
9 N
178 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
Adult Male. — Head and neck black, except a white band
between the eyes, and the long, hairy, maroon-coloured crest
which covers the hinder part of the head ; upper-parts rich
green, glossed with steel-blue ; wings dark brown, mixed with
buff, except the inner coverts and scapulars, which are maroon,
glossed with purplish-blue ; under-parts black, glossed with
blue. Total length, io*8 inches; wing, 5*5; tail, 2*3; tarsus, 1.7.
Adult Female. — Head blackish-grey, moderately crested ; rest
of the plumage bright grass-green, washed with grey on the
belly, except the wings, which resemble those of the male, but
the inner wing-coverts and scapulars are mostly chestnut, only
edged with maroon, and but slightly glossed. Size rather smaller.
Range. — From Southern Tenasserim and Western Siam,
south through the Malay Peninsula to Sumatra, Java, Billi-
ton, and Borneo.
Habits. — The only notes on the habits of this bird worth
recording are those by the late Mr. W. Davison, who writes :
" This species is always found in small parties of six or eight
or more, males and females, keeping to the dense forest, and
never venturing into the open, living on berries, seeds, tender
shoots and leaves, and insects of various sorts. They do not
scratch about nearly so much as \.\\q Arbor kolas, and are much
quicker and more lively in their movements, much like a Quail,
running hither and thither. They rise well before a dog, but
it is hard to flush them without. Their note is a soft, mellow,
pleasant whistle, which is chiefly heard in the morning, but
which they also utter when calling to each other after they
have been separated. Like that of A. rujigularis, their note
is very easily imitated, and they will answer the call readily."
THE BLACK WOOD-PARTRIDGES. GENUS MELANO-
PERDIX.
Mela?ioperdix, Jerd. B. Ind. iii. p. 580 (1864).
I'ype, M. nigra (Vig.).
Tail short, soft, and rounded ; composed of twelve feathers ;
more than half the length of the wing.
THE QUAILS. I 79
First primary flight-feather equal in length to the tenth,
fifth rather the longest.
No occipital crest in either sex.
Bill unusually stout and thick.
Hind-toe with a rudime?ttary claw. Sexes entirely different
in plumage.
Only one species is known.
I. THE BLACK WOOD-PARTRIDGE. MELANOPERDIX NIGRA.
Cryptonyx nige?', Vigors, Zool. Journ. iv. p. 349 (1829) [w<'?A'].
C?yptonyx fern/gineus, Vigors, Zool. Journ. iv. p. 349 (1829)
\^female\.
Cryptonyx dussumieri^ Less. Belang. Voy. Ind. p. 275, pi. vii.
(1834).
Melanoperdix nigra, Jerd. B. Ind. iii. p. 580 (1864) ; Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 228 (1893).
Adult Male. — Entire plumage uniform glossy black. Total
length, 10-5 inches; wing, 5*5; tail, yi\ tarsus, i-8.
Adult Female. — General colour above chestnut, finely mottled
with black, and with bars of the same colour on the scapulars ;
throat and belly whitish ; chest dark chestnut ; breast and
flanks more rufous, the latter barred and mottled with black.
Range. — Southern part of the Malay Peninsula from Province
Wellesley southwards, Sumatra, and Borneo.
This species, Mr. C. Hose tells us, is " found in the low
country, and does not ascend the mountains " of the Baram
district, Sarawak.
Eggs. — Five in number ; broad ovals in shape, considerably
pointed at the smaller end ; white, with the surface slightly
rough and chalky. Measurements, 1-65 by 1*3 inch.
THE QUAILS. GENUS COTURNIX.
Coturnix, Bonn. Enc. Meth. Intr. pp. Ixxxvii. 216 (1790).
Type, C. cotiirnix (Linn.).
Tail composed of ten or twelve feathers, short, soft, and
N 2
i8o Allen's naturalist's library.
hidden by the upper tail-coverts; less than half the length of
the wing.
First primary flight-feather about equal to the third, the
second being generally slightly the longest : in some in-
stances the first three feathers are sub-equal, or the first may
even be a trifle the longest.
Axillary feathers* long and white.
Feet without spurs. Sexes different in plumage.
This genus may be divided into two sections :
A. Outer web of the primary flight-feathers with irregular
bars and marks of buff (species i and 2, pp. 180-184).
B. Outer web of the primary flight-feathers uniform brown
(species 3 to 6, pp. 185-188).
A. Outer zveb of the primary flight-feathers with i?'reguiar bars
and 7fiarks of buff.
I. THE MIGRATORY QUAIL. COTURNIX COTURNIX.
Tetrao coturnix, Linn. S. N. i. p. 278 (1766).
Perdix cotur7iix, Lath. Ind. Orn. ii. p. 651 (1790).
Coturnix commu?iis, Bonn. Tabl. Encycl. Meth. i. p. 217, pi.
96, fig. 2 (1791); Dresser, B. Europe, vii. p. 143, pi, 476
(1878) ; Plume and jVLarshall, Game B. of India, ii. p. 133,
pi. (1879): et auctorum, /^^^/;;^.
Coturnix dactylisonans, Temm. Pig. et Gall. iii. pp. 478, 740
(1815); Gould, B. Europe, iv. pi. 263 (1837).
Coturfiix vulgaris, Bout. Orn. Dauphine, p. 72, pi. 43, fig. i
(1843).
Coturnix coturnix, Licht. ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. 233 (1893).
Adult Male. — General colour above sandy-brown, with pale
buff shaft-stripes and black bars and markings ; chin and
throat luhite, with a black a7ichor-shaped mark down the middle:
chest rufous-buff, with pale shafts ; rest of under-parts paler.
Total lengthy 67 inches ; wing, 4*2 ; tail, i'5 ; tarsus, i.
* The feathers under the wing, where it joins the body.
THE QUAILS. l8l
Adult Female. — Differs from the )nak in having no black band
down the middle of the throat, and the chest more or less
thickly spotted with brownish-black. From the female of C.
japonica it may be readily distinguished by having the feathers
on the chin and sides of the throat short and rounded.
The male described above is a typical example of C. cotur-
nix. As considerable variation is to be found in the colora-
tion of the chin and throat and their black markings, it may
be as well to give here the substance of the remarks I have
already published on this subject. The Migratory Quail has
been constantly confused with two more or less resident local
forms, C. capensis^ found in South Africa, &c., and C. japonica,
from Japan and China. The former is probably nothing more
than a more richly coloured, rather smaller, resident local race
of C. cotur?iix, but the latter is a perfectly distinct and easily
characterised species. The migratory bird, wandering over an
immensely wide range, visits the countries inhabited by both
these forms, and constantly inter-breeds with them, the result
being that all sorts of intermediate forms occur. The male of
C. japonica has the chin and throat dull brick-red, devoid of
any black markings, and the intermediate plumages between
this species and the migratory bird are most noticeable among
the male hybrids. For instance, some have the dull brick-red
throat of C. Japonica and the black anchor-shaped mark of C.
coturnix ; others have only the upper two-thirds of the throat
dull red, and the lower third white ; while, again, a third lot
have, in addition, a black band down the middle of the red
part ; and all kinds of intermediate stages between these three
examples may be found. These hybrids are, so far as I know,
generally only found in Mongolia, China, and Japan, though
there is one skin among the large series in the National Collec-
tion said to have been obtained in Bootan, N. India.
The Migratory Quail also inter-breeds freely with the chest-
nut-throated form (C capensis) found in S. Africa and the
islands surrounding the coast, and the results are to be seen in
152 ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
the many male birds from S. Africa and Southern Europe, &c.,
in which the white parts on the sides of the head and throat are
more or less suffused with the bright rufous-chestnut charac-
teristic of the resident bird.
A curious variety or scmi-melanistic form of C. coturnix
occurs in Spain in the marshy neighbourhood of Valencia,
A male in the British Museum has the general colour of the
plumage black, and the female has the under-parts suffused
with sooty-brown.
Range. — Africa, Europe, and Asia, except in the south-east
portion.
Haljits. — The migratory habits of this species are well-known
to most people, but though the great majority— countless hosts
of Quail, which may be numbered by millions rather than
thousands — shift their quarters in September and October, on
the approach of winter, and move southwards, in many places
a certain number remain and spend the winter where they have
bred. For instance, in the South of England and Ireland,
and in the countries bordering the Mediterranean, a few re-
main to winter, but the bulk of the European summer visitors
betake themselves by various lines of migration to South
Africa, from whence they return in March and April of the
following spring. Enormous numbers also winter in India,
crossing the Himalayas from Central Asia, while many arrive
in Sind and Guzerat from the west, moving southwards from
Beluchistan, Persia, and other northern latitudes.
The number of migrants varies greatly in different years, tht^r
movements being largely, if not entirely, regulated by the food-
supply and seasonal conditions of the countries which they
visit.
One may form some idea of the vast number to be met
with in some parts of India from the following remarks by
Tickell. He says : " In such localities as have been above
noticed, Quails at times abound to such a degree that shooting
them is mere slaughter. Where birds get up at every step dogs
THE QUAILS. 1 83
or beaters are worse than useless, and where the game is so
plentiful, search after a wounded bird is seldom thought worth
the trouble. It is usual to be provided with two or three
guns,* to be loaded, as fast as emptied, by a servant. With
one gun only it would be necessary to wash out the barrels
two or three times in the course of the afternoon, or at all
events to wait every now and then for them to cool. A toler-
ably good shot will bag fifty to sixty brace in about three
hours, and knock down many others that are not found. I re-
member one day getting into a deyra, or island formed by
alluvial deposit, in the Ganges, between Patna (Bankipore) and
Sonepore, which was sown almost entirely over with gram
(chunna), and which literally swarmed with Quail. 1 do
not exaggerate when I say they were like locusts in number.
Every step that brushed the covert sent off a number of them,
so that I had to stand every now and then like a statue and
employ my arms only, and that in a stealthy manner, for the
purpose of loading and firing. A furtive scratch of the head,
or a wipe of the heated brow, dismissed a whole " bevy " into
the next field ; and, in fact, the embarras de richesse was nearly
as bad as if there had been no birds at all."
Kest. — A slight hollow in the ground, with little or no lining,
and sheltered by standing crops or grass, &c.
Eggs. — Eight to twelve in number, sometimes more are laid \
creamy-white or buff, more or less boldly blotched and spotted
with rich brown. Average measurements, i*i5 by o*88.
SUB-SP. a. THE CAPE QUAIL. COTURNIX CAPENSIS.
Cotuniix capensis, Licht. fide Gray, Handl. B. ii. p. 268
(1870); Ogilvie-Grant, Ann. Mag. N. H. (6), ix. pp. 167,
169, 170 (1892); id. Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. pp. 235, 237
(1893)-
Adult Male. — Differs from the male of typical C. coiurnix in
having the sides of the head, chin, and throat bright rufous-
* He refers to the days before breech-loaders came in.
184 Allen's naturalist's library.
chestnut, and the mantle and chest washed with the same
colour. It is also somewhat smaller. Total length, 6 '3 inches ;
wing, 3*9-4; tail, 1*4; tarsus, i-i.
Adult Female. — Very similar to the female of C. coturnix^ but
slightly smaller.
Eange. — South Africa, south of about 15° S. latitude, Mau-
ritius,* Madagascar, Comoro Islands, Cape Verd Islands,
Canaries, Madeira, and the Azores.
II. JAPANESE QUAIL. COTURNIX JAPONICA.
Cottirnix vulgaris japonica^ Temm. and Schl. Faun. Jap. p.
103, pi. 61 (1842).
Coturtiix jap07iica^ Cass, in Perry's Exp. Jap. ii. p. 227 (1856) ;
Prjevalsky, in Rowley's Orn. Misc. ii. p. 424 (1877);
Ogilvie-Grant, Ann. Mag. N. H. (6), x. pp. 167, 170, 171
(1892; with woodcut of head of female); id. Cat. B.
Brit. Mus. xxii. pp. 235, 239 (1893).
{Plate XVI.)
Adult Male. — Differs from the male of C. coturnix chiefly in
having the sides of the head, chin, and throat uniform dull
brick-red, with no trace of the black anchor-shaped mark, and
the margins of the flank-feathers mostly rufous and much less
spotted with black. Total length, 57 inches; wing, 3-9; tail,
1-2 ; tarsus, i"o5.
Adult Female. — Differs from the female of C. cofurtiix in
having the feathers of the chin and throat elongated a?id pointed^
especially on the sides, and generally margined with rufous ; the
chest and sides less spotted with black.
Young Males have the elongated throat-feathers as in the adult
female, and the middle of the throat is suffused with dull brick-
red. As the short, rounded, brick-red feathers of the adult are
moulted, the elongated feathers disappear.
* There is a fine adult male of the typical Cape form in the National
Collection said to have come from the Mauritius, but the locality viay be a
mistake. It is said that no indigenous Quail occurs there.
PLATE ZVI.
.,#
/
Ir^ii^ '
/;
'/
T"^-
■'\
/
JAPANESE QUAIIj
THE QUAILS. 1 85
Range. — Japan, South-east Mongolia, and China as far south
as Canton. Specimens have also been obtained in Bootan,
Northern India, and Karen-nee.
Habits. — Apparently very similar to those of the Migratory
Quail.
B. Outer web of the primary Jiight-feat/iers unifonn bjvwti.
III. THE BLACK-BREASTED OR RAIN QUAIL. COTURNIX
COROMANDELICA.
Tetrao coromandelicus^ Gmel. S. N. i. pt. ii. p. 764 (1788).
Perdix coromajidelica, Lath. Ind. Orn. ii. p. 654 (1790).
Cotiirnix coromandelica, Bonn.. Tabl. Encycl. Meth. i. p. 221
(1791); Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 9 (1854); Hume and
Marshall, Game Birds of India, ii. p. 152, pi. (1879); Gates,
ed. Hume's Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 444 (1890) ;
Ggilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 241 (1893).
Coturnix textilis, Temm. Pig. et Gall. iii. pp. 512, 742 (1815).
Adult Male. — Like the male of C. coturnix, but the black
pattern on the throat and neck is more strongly marked, and
there is a large black patch covering the middle of the chest
and breast. Total length, 5 inches ; wing, 3*5 ; tail, r2 ; tar-
sus, i'o5.
Adult Female. — Very like the female of C. coturnix, but easily
recognised by the absence of buff markings on the outer webs
of the flight-feathers, as well as by its smaller size.
Range. — Greater part of the Peninsula of India, and extend-
ing to Assam, Manipur, Chittagong, and Pegu ; also no doubt
to Arakan.
Habits.— Generally speaking, the Rain Quail is merely a
seasonal visitor over the greater part of its range, spending the
monsoon in the drier parts of Upper and Western India, and
the remainder of the year in the damp low-lying districts ; but
in many parts of Central India it is resident, merely shifting its
feeding-ground with the change of season.
1 86 Allen's naturalist's library.
As a straggler it may sometimes be met with in the hills at
an elevation of quite 6,000 feet, but the plains are its real
home. Between the months of April and October, Mr. Hume
says that it is habitually found in pairs, and singly during the
cold season, while just after the young are able to fly, it may be
found in coveys. The habits of this species are generally very
similar to those of the Grey Quail, but the call is quite distinct,
being a louder double {not a tri-syllabic) whistle.
According to Mr. Hume, " Rain Quail afford just as pretty
shooting as the Common Quail when they are numerous ;
indeed, as they run less and fly rather faster, they yield per-
haps better sport ; but I have never known it possible to make
such huge bags of these as one can of the other. In Upper
India, during the winter and spring, you are pretty sure to
pick up a brace or two along with the Grey Quail (with which
they seem to associate on friendly terms) .when shooting this
latter ; but I never knew more than five brace killed at this
season in a day by one gun. But just when they first appear
in the Doab in June or July, according as the rains are early
or late, you may manage, by hard work, to get from twenty to
thirty brace in a day, if you have steady dogs and there is
plenty of grass about from two to three feet in height, or if,
as is the case in some districts, there are a good many fields of
the dwarf early rain millets."
Nest. — A slight hollow without lining, or with only a few
blades of grass.
Eggs. — Average number about nine, sometimes more, often
less. The ground-colour varies from yellowish-white to brown-
ish-buff. The markings vary greatly in different clutches. Some
are finely spotted and dotted all over with blackish or brown ;
others are heavily blotched and marked with rich brown, and
much resemble those of the Migratory Quail ; but numerous
intermediate, and less heavily marked, sets are not uncommon.
Average measurements, 109 by o'83 inch.
THE QUAILS. 187
IV. delegorgue's quail. COTURNIX DELEGORGUEI.
Coturnix delegorguei, Deleg. Voy. Afr. Austr. ii. p. 615 (1847);
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 243 (1893).
Coturnix hisirioniai, Hartl. Rev, et Mag. Zool. i. p. 495
(1849); id. Beitr. Orn. W.-Afr. pp. i, 38, pi. xi. (1852).
Coturnix fornasini, Bianc. Spec. Zool. Mosamb. fasc. xvi. p.
399, pi. i. fig. 2 (1850).
Coturnix criicigera, Heugl. Vog. N. O.-Afr. p. 51 (1856).
Adult Male. — Easily distinguished from the male of C. cotur-
nix by having the general colour of the under-parts chestnut,
with a large black patch in the middle of the breast. Total
length, 6'o inches; wing, 3*7; tail, 1-3; tarsus, i.
Adult Female. — Distinguished from the female of C. coturnix
in having the general colour of the under-parts rufous-buff or
dull chestnut.
Range. — Africa, south of about 15" N. latitude ; recently ob-
tained at Aden.
Very little is known about this rare Quail, but its habits are
probably very similar to those of the common species.
V. THE AUSTRALIAN QUAIL. COTURNIX PECTORALIS.
Coturnix pecf oralis, Gould, P. Z. S. 1837, p. 8; id. Syn. B.
Austr. text and pi. fig. i (1837-8) ; North, Nests and Eggs
B. Austr. p. 289 (1889); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. 244 (1893).
Adult Male. — Differs from the male of C. coturnix chiefly in
having the sides of the head, chin, and throat dull brick-red
(as in C. japonica), but the feathers of the under-parts are
white with black shaft-stripes, and there is a black patch in the
middle of the chest. Total length, 7 inches; wing, 4-1; tail, 1-5;
tarsus, 0*9.
Adult Female. — Differs chiefly from the fenuile of C. coturnix
in having the feathers of the chest and breast longitudinally
barred with black near the extremity, the bars being inter-
rupted in the middle by a wide buff interspace.
1 88 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
Range. — Australia and Tasmania.
Habits. — This is a very common bird all over Eastern and
South-eastern Australia, as well as in Tasmania.
Gould writes : " Open grassy plains, extensive grass flats,
and the parts of the country under cultivation are situations
favourable to the habit of the bird ; in its economy and mode
of life, in fact, it so closely resembles the Quail of Europe (C.
coturnix) that a description of one is equally descriptive of
the other. Its powers of flight are considerable, and when
flushed, it wings its way with arrow-like swiftness to a distant
part of the plain ; it lies well to a pointer, and has from the
first settlement of the colony always afforded considerable
amusement to the sportsman. It is an excellent bird for the
table, fully equalling in this respect its European representative.
. . . The chief food of this species is grain, seeds, and in-
sects; the grain, as a matter of course, being only procured in
cultivated districts, and hence the name of Stubble Quail has
been given to it by the colonists of Tasmania, from the great
numbers that visit the fields after the harvest is over."
Nest. — The slight nest of dry grass is placed in grassy flats
or under some tuft of herbage on the open plain.
Eggs. — Seven to fourteen in number, varying considerably in
markings, even in the same nest ; usually with the ground-
colour yellowish-white, with markings varying from minute
freckles of umber-brown to large marbled blotches of a darker
tint. Average measurements, i'2 by 0*94 inch.
VI. THE NEW ZEALAND QUAIL. COTURNIX NOV^-
ZEALANDIiE.
Coturnix tiovce-zealandice^ Quoy and Gaimard, Voy. Astrol.
Zool. i. p. 242, pi. 24, fig. I (1830) ; Buller, Hist. B. N.
Zeal. i. p. 225, pi. xxiii. (1888) ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B.
Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 245 (1893).
Adult Male. — Like the male of C. pedoralis^ but larger ; the
general colouring of the upper-parts warmer in tonej the sides
THE QUAILS. 189
of the head, chin, and throat brighter brick-colour or chesUiut,
the latter with a black bar on each side ; and the fore-part of
the neck is mostly black like the middle of the breast. Total
length, 7*6 inches; wing, 4*6 ; tail, i'8 ; tarsus, i.
Adult Female. — Distinguished from the female of C. pectoralis
by having the black bars on the chest- and breast-feathers €07i-
fluejit or very nearly so, and the black markings on the rest of
the under-parts more numerous.
Range. — New Zealand.
This handsome species, once common in New Zealand, was
long believed to be nearly, if not quite, extinct; for in 1888 Sir
W. Buller remarked that no specimen had been heard of for
the last twelve years. He says : " In the early days of the
colony it was excessively abundant in all the open country, and
especially on the grass-covered downs of the South Island.
The first settlers, who carried with them from the old country
their traditional love of sport, enjoyed some excellent Quail-
shooting for several years ; and it is a matter of local history
that Sir D. Munro and Major Richmond, in 1848, shot as many
as forty-three brace in the course of a single day within a few
miles of what is now the city of Nelson, while a Canterbury
writer has recorded that ' in the early days, on the plains near
Selwyn, a bag of twenty brace of Quail was not looked upon as
extraordinary sport for a day's shooting.' "
" It may be interesting to mention, as showing the value
attaching to extinct or rapidly-expiring forms, that a skin of this
bird (and that, too, a female) sent from the Canterbury Museum
to Italy fetched as much as ^75." The disappearance of this
bird is no doubt largely due to the bush fires employed in
clearing the Sheep-runs, as well as to the introduction of Dogs,
Cats, and Rats.
It has since been ascertained that a few bevies still exist on
the Kermadec Islands, but no doubt these will soon be exter-
minated for the sake of their market value.
190 Allen's naturalist's library.
Eggs. — Very similar to those of the Australian Quail ; yellow-
ish-brown or buff, thickly marked with spots and blotches of
umber. One pair of eggs in the National Collection are so
thickly spotted, that little of the ground-colour is \-isible, while
another pair are not nearly so heavily marked. Measurements,
about 1*3 by 09 inch.
THE SWAMP-QUAILS. GENUS SYNCECUS.
Synoicus, Gould, B. Austr. v. pi. 89, or pt. xii. (1843).
Type. S. at/ sf rail's (Temm.).
Characters as in CofurnLx, but the axillary feathers are short
and grey.
Only three small species are known.
I. THE AUSTRALIAN SWAMP-QUAIL. SYNCECUS AUSTRALIS.
Coturfiix australiSj Temm. Pig. et Gall. iii. pp. 474, 740
(1815).
Synoicus australis, Gould, B. Austr. v. pi. 89 (1843) ; North,
Nests and Eggs Austr. B. p. 289 (1889).
Synoicus sordidus and S. diemenefisis, Gould. P. Z. S. 1S47,
P- ZZ-
Synoicus cervinus, Gould, Handb. B. Austr. ii. p. 195 (1865).
Syncecus ausfraiis, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 247
(1893).
Adult Male. — The feathers of the upper-parts are reddish-
brown, with dull grey centres, the black mottlings are few and
fine, and the white shafts, so conspicuous in younger birds,
are scarcely visible. The sides of the head and throat are
dull grey. The feathers of the under-parts are buff, with grey
centres and almost devoid of black cross-bars. In somewhat
yminger examples the plumage of the upper-parts is mottled
with black, and barred with rufous, the narrow white shafts
of the feathers being well defined ; sides of the head and throat
pale vinaceous-white ; rest of under-parts buff, with V-shaped
black cross-bars. Total length, about 7-5 inches; wing, 3'5-4"2 ;
THE SWAMP-QUAILS.
I9T
tail, 17-2-0; tarsus. 0-9. This stage of plumage represents
typical 5. australis (Temm.). In very old males {S. sordidtts,
Gould) most of the markings on the upper- and under-parts
disappear, and there is a general tendency to uniformity of
colour in the plumage.
Adult Female. — Differs from the male in having the sides of
the crown black or mostly black : the black markings on the
upper- and under-parts inuch coarser : the centres of the feathers
are not grey : and the shaft-stripes are huff z.\\^ much 7i'ider than
in the male. From the female of 6". raalfeni^ it is distinguished
by having the chest pale rufous-buff, barred all over with black.
The Australian Swamp-Quail, as will be seen from the above
list of names, was divided by Gould into four distinct species :
but, from the large series I have examined, it is quite clear
that the characters on which he relied are merely differences
due to age and sex, and that all the forms are merely stages of
plumage of one and the same species. It must also be noted
that individuals vary, one from another, considerably in size.
even in birds from the same locality, as may be seen from the
measurements given above, though this is of very little import-
ance. The changes in plumage of the upper-parts of the pre-
sent species are very similar to those found in the Painted Quail
{Excalfactoria chinensis).
Range. — South-eastern New Guinea, Australia, and Tasmania.
Habits. — This species is distributed all over Australia and
Tasmania, and seems to prefer thick grassy flats and damp
spots overgrown with undergrowth in the vicinity of rivers and
water-holes. Gould says: "'Its call is very similar to that of
the Common Partridge, and, like that bird, it is found in coveys
of from ten to eighteen in number, which simultaneously rise
from the ground, and pitch again within a hundred yards of
the spot whence they rose. It sits so close that it will often
admit of being nearly trodden upon before it will rise. Pointers
stand readily to it, and it offers, perhaps, better sport to the
sportsman than any other bird inhabiting Australia. Its wei^rht
192 ALLEN S naturalist's LIBRARY.
is about four ounces and three-quarters, and its flesh is deli-
cious."
Nest. — Made of dry grass, &c., and placed on the ground
among rank grass bordering running water.
Eggs. — From ten to eighteen in number ; pale bluish-white,
finely dotted all over with light brown. Average measurements,
1-17 by 0*92 inch.
II. RAALTEN's SWAMP-QUAIL. SYNCECUS RAALTENI.
Ferdix raaltenii, Miill. and Schl. Land- en Volkenk. p. 158
(1839-44).
Coturnix raalteni, Wallace, P. Z. S. 1863, p. 486.
Sy?toecus raalteni^ Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 249 ■
(1893)-
Adult Male. — Differs chiefly from the most adult male of S.
australis in having the sides of the head, chin, throat, and rest
of under-parts rufous^ with traces of dark cross-bars on the
sides and flanks. As in less mature examples of S. australis^
the younger male has the white shafts of the feathers of the
upper-parts well marked, and the black bars on the under-parts
stronger and extending over the breast and belly. Total length,
7-4 inches; wing, 3'5-3'8 ; tail, i-5-r7 ; tarsus, 0-95.
Adult Female. — Distinguished from the male by having thq
upper-parts blotched and marked with black, and the shaft-
stripes wider and more distinct, while the under-parts are more
strongly barred with black. From the female of S. australis it
differs in having the chest pale dull rufous, with the black bars
nearly obsolete.
Range.— Islands of Timor and Flores.
III. THE GREY SWAMP-QUAIL. SYNCECUS PLUMBEUS.
Syncecus plumbeus, Salvador!, Ann. Mus. Civ. Genov. (2), xiv.
p. 152(1894).
Through the kindness of Count Salvador!, I have had the
pleasure of examining the type of this species, which appears
THE PAINTED QUAILS. I93
to be a very old male, and in general appearance resembles the
most adult males of S. austraUs, but differs in having the plu-
mage much greyer than that of any example of the latter species
that I have seen.
Eange. — South-east New Guinea.
THE PAINTED QUAILS. GENUS EXCALFACTORIA.
Excalfactoria^ Bonap. C. R. xlii. p. 88 1 (1856).
Type, E. chtne?ists (Linn.).
Tail composed of only eight very short soft feathers, entirely
hidden by the upper tail-coverts and less than half the length
of the wing. The first primary flight-feather slightly shorter
than, or sub-equal to, the second and longest.
Tarsi without spurs. Sexes entirely difTerent.
All the three species of this genus are birds of extremely
small size, and the plumage of the males is very beautiful.
I. THE COMMON PAINTED QUAIL. EXCALFACTORIA
CHINENSIS.
The Chinese Quail, Edwards, Glean. Nat. Hist. v. p. 77, pi. 247
(1758).
Tetrao chineiisis, Linn. S. N. i. p. 277 (1766).
Coturnix excalfactoria, Temm. Pig. et Gall. iii. pp. 516, 742
(1815).
Coturnix fiavipes, Blyth, J. As. Soc. Beng. xi. p. 808 (1842).
Excalfactoria chinensis, Bonap. ; Hume and Marshall, Game
Birds of India, ii. p. 162, pi. (1879); Gates, ed. Hume's
Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 448 (1890); Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 250 (1893).
Excalfactoria minima, Gould, P. Z. S. 1859, p. 128; id. B.
Asia, vii. pi. vii. (1867).
Coturfiix caineana, Swinh. Ibis, 1865, pp. 351, 542.
Adult Male. — Upper-parts brown, mottled and blotched with
black, most of the feathers with whitish shaft-stripes, widest on
the lower back and rump ; forehead, sides of the head, and
wing-coverts washed with dark slaty-blue, the latter mixed
9 o
194 Allen's naturallst's library.
with bright chestnut ; chin and throat handsomely marked
with black and white ; upper part of the chest, sides, and
flanks slaty-blue ; rest of the under-parts rich chestnut. Total
length, 5*2 inches; wing, 2-8; tail, i-i ; tarsus, o-8.
In very old birds the shaft-stripes on the upper-parts entirely
disappear, and the whole aspect becomes darker and more
uniform; on the under-parts the chestnut gradually takes the
place of the slaty-blue colour till very little of the latter remains.
Younger Males. — The upper-parts are warmer brown, the black
markings stronger, the shaft-stripes wider, and the under-parts
are mostly slaty-blue, with only a small patch of chestnut on the
middle of the belly.
Adult Female. — Upper-parts like those of the younger male,
but the forehead and sides of the head are rufous-buff; the
chin and throat white ; and the under-parts buff, barred with
black on the chest, sides, and flanks.
Range. — Ceylon, Indian Peninsula, and the Indo-Chinese
countries ; also Formosa, Celebes, Ternate. ? Hainan.
This extremely beautiful little Quail has a very wide distribu-
tion.
The somewhat darker and more strongly marked sub-species
E. li?ieata, described below, is merely a southern representative
of this bird, found in many of the larger islands of the Malay
Archipelago and Australia, and it is extremely curious that we
should find the typical E. chinensis in Celebes and Ternate.
The examples collected by Mr. A. R. Wallace in the former
island were described as a distinct species {E. minima) by Gould,
and were supposed to differ from E. chi?iensis in being smaller,
but even this distinction, shght as it is, does not hold good, for
many examples from India and the Malay Peninsula are quite
as small.
HalDits. — Mr. Hume remarks : " I have always, except in the
autumn, met with this species singly or in pairs. You may at
times find a considerable number in the same patch of grass,
but they are always as independent of each other as are similar
THE PAIN 1 ED QUAILS. I95
aggregations of the Common Quail, and I totally disbelieve
Latham's story of their going about in Sumatra in ' flocks of a
hundred birds,' or in any sort of flocks or coveys except just
after the breeding-season, when the two old birds, with their
four to six young ones, do keep in a covey.
" Open, swampy, grassy lands or meadows are their favourite
haunts, and I doubt whether they are ever found far from such.
They will, doubtless, wander into low bush-jungle, the edges
of low-standing crops, and, as Jerdon says, into patches of
grass along the sides of roads ; but this is almost exclusively
when feeding in the early mornings and evenings, or when
their meadow-homes have been suddenly flooded.
" They come freely into the open when feeding, and in the
early mornings may be seen gliding along by the sides of roads
and paths, picking about and scratching here and there, taking
little notice of passengers, and either running on before them
if not pressed, or just hiding up in the nearest tuft of grass, to
emerge again as soon as the traveller has got ten or fifteen
yards beyond their hiding-place.
"Their call is a very low, soft, double-whistled note, com-
paratively rarely heard except when a pair has been separated.
Then, indeed, almost the moment the male has lit he begins
calling to his mate. They feed quite silently, and, if they have
seeti and are expecting you, rise quite silently also ; but both
sexes, if suddenly alarmed, and females when startled from
their nests, rise with a low, shrill, rapidly-repeated chirp, ' tchi^
fchi, tchi? Their flight is very fast, straight, and low, rarely
more than a foot above the tops of the grass, and is continued
for from fifty to seventy yards, affording an excellent shot.
Indeed, they fly so fast that, in places where they are abundant,
they must, I should think, afford excellent sport. Always, be
it understood, if you have small dogs to flush them ; for with-
out dogs, though you may or may not be able to start them at
once, you will certainly not succeed in putting them up a
second time.
o 2
196 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
" They feed chiefly on grass-seeds ; very Httle, so far as my
experience goes, on either grain or insects, though they do un-
doubtedly eat both of these. But I have always found them
in meadows, where there was but little cultivation in the
neighbourhood, and, perhaps, when they occur where millet-
fields are common, they may, as I have been told, feed equally
on these small grains. . . .
" This species is clearly monogamous. The hen sits (not
the male, as in the Bustard Quails), and the male is always to
be found near at hand ; and when the young are hatched both
parents accompany the brood for at least two months after they
are able to fly.
" I have had reason to suspect that they may breed twice a
year, but the matter is still doubtful, as the different periods
at which we have found their nests may be due to differences
in the climate of the localities in which we met with them."
Nest. — A mere depression in the ground, in a clump of coarse
grass, loosely lined with a few grass-stems.
Eggs. — Five or six in number ; rather broad ovals and with
some gloss; olive-brown, more or less speckled with minute
reddish-brown or purplish-grey dots. Average measurements,
0-98 by 076 inch.
SUB-SP. a. THE ISLAND PAINTED QUAIL. EXCALFACTORIA
LINEATA.
La Petite Caille de Plsle de Lupn, Sonnerat, Voy. N. Guin. p.
54, pi. 24 (1776).
Oriolus Hneatus, Scop. Del. Flor. et Faun. Insubr. ii. p. 87
(1786).
Tetrao majiillensis, Gmel. S. N. i. pt. ii. p. 764 (1788).
Excalfactoria c/iinensis, A.uc\.or\im^ passim ; nee Linn.
Excalfactoria australis, Gould, Handb. B. Austr. ii. p. 197
(1865).
Excalfactoria lineata, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxu. p.
253 (1893).
THE PAINTED QUAILS. I97
Adult Male. — Differs from the male of E. chinensis in having
the general colour of the upper-parts much darker and more
strongly blotched with black.
Adult Female. — Distinguished from \hQ female of E. chinensis
by having much more black on the upper-parts, while the under-
parts are darker and much more strongly barred with black.
Range. — Philippines, Palawan, Sulu Islands, Borneo, Java,
Sumatra, and Australia.
II. THE NEW BRITAIN PAINTED QUAIL. EXCALFACTORIA
LEPIDA.
Excalfadoria lepida^ Hartlaub, Ber. Ver. Hanib. vii. November
(1879); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 254
(1893).
Adult Male. — Upper-parts darker than in typical E. chin-
e?isis, and similar to those of E. lineaia, but easily distin-
guished from both these forms by having no trace of chest-
nut on the wing-coverts, while the under-parts are entirely
slaty-blue, except the lower part of the belly and under tail-
coverts, which are chestnut. Total length, 4*8 inches; wing,
27 ; tail, 0*9; tarsus, 07.
Adult remale. — We have never had the opportunity of ex-
amining the female of this species, but it is probably very
similar to that of E. lineata.
Range. — New Britain, New Ireland, and the Duke of Yo.k
Group to the East of New Guinea.
III. ADANSON's PAINTED QUAIL. EXCALFACTORIA ADANSOM.
Coturnix adansonii^ Verr. Rev. et Mag. de Zool. 185 1, p. 515 ;
Sharpe, ed. Layard's Birds S. Afr. p. 606 (1884).
Excalfadoria ada?tso?iii, Bonap. ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit.
Mus. xxii. p. 255 (1893).
Coturnix emini, Reichenow, J. f. O. 1892, p. 18, pi. i, fig. 3
[male].
Adult Male. — Differs from the male of E. chinensis chiefly in
198 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
having the upper-parts blackish-brown washed with slate ; the
upper tail-coverts and wing-coverts chestnut, the latter with
slate-grey shaft-stripes ; the under-parts dark slate-grey, except
the sides and flanks, which are bright chestnut. Total length,
5-2 inches; wing, 2-9-3; tail, i*i ; tarsus, o-8.
Younger Males have the middle of the back blotched with
black, but in the more adult examples these marks disappear.
Adult Female. — Very similar to the female of E. Ii?ieata, but
the wing-coverts are more strongly barred with black. The
females of this species appear to average rather larger than the
males, the wing measuring 3*i-3-2 ; but we have not examined
a very large series of birds.
Range. — Africa, souih of about 5° north latitude.
Habits. — Adanson's Painted Quail has a very wide distribu-
tion in Africa, being found in suitable localities over the
greater part of that vast continent.
It is rather a rare bird, and its habits appear to be very
similar to those of its eastern ally, E. chinensis.
THE STONE PHEASANTS. 199
THE PHEASANTS, TURKEYS, AND GUINEA-FOWLS
(PHASIANINiE).
The first flight-feather is considerably shorter than the
tenth,* the tail is shorter or longer (often much longer) than
the wing, and the sides of the head are feathered or entirely
naked. [If the first flight-feather is longer than the tenth, the
tail is always considerably longer than the wing.]
The most typical form of Pheasant-wing is found in the
Argus Pheasant {Argiisianus argiis), where the first flight-
feather is the shortest, and the tenth the longest.
THE STONE PHEASANTS. GENUS PTILOPACHYS.
Ptilopachus, Swainson, Class. B. ii. p. 344 (i837)-
Type, P, fiiscus (Vieill).
Tail composed of fourteeft feathers, rather long and rounded
and more than three-fifths of the length of the wing.
First flight-feather somewhat shorter than the tenth; fifth
sHghtly the longest.
Feet without spurs in either sex.
A large naked space behind the eye. Sexes similar in
plumage.
Only one African species is known.
I. THE AFRICAN STONE PHEASANT. PTILOPACHYS FUSCUS.
Ferdix fusca, Vieill. Tabl. Encycl. Meth. i. p. 366 (1823); id.
Gal. des Ois. ii. p. 40, pl- ccxii. (1825); Jard. and Selby,
Illustr. Orn. (new series), pi. xvi. (1837).
Perdix ventralis, Valenc. Diet. Sci. Nat. xxxviii. p. 435 (1S25).
* The genus Phasianus, including the typical Pheasants, forms an ex-
ception, the first flight-feather being about equal to the eighth; but the
length of the tail, which is always greater than that of the wmg, at once
distinguishes it as one of the Phasiajiiiuv, though, as already remarked on
p. yS^the distinction between this group and the Perchcime is a purely
artificial one.
200 ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
Ftilopachus erythrorhy fichus^ Swains. B. of W. Afr. ii. p. 220
(1837).
Ptilopachys fusais, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
256 (1893).
Adult Male and Female. — Upper-parts brown, finely mottled
with whitish; mantle and chest mostly sienna, with a dark
shaft-band down the middle of each feather ; sides of the head
and throat dark brown, edged with white; middle of the
breast uniform buff; belly dark brown ; sides and flanks chest-
nut, with irregular cross-bars of brown and white.
Male measures: Total length, 11 inches; wing, 5-2; tail,
3*6 ; tarsus, 1*2.
Female: Smaller; wing, 47.
Eange. — Africa, extending from Senegambia and the Gold
Coast to Kordofan, Abyssinia, and the Siik country.
Habits. — Very little has been recorded about the habits of
•this curious bird, which seems to be met with chiefly on the
bare stony hillsides at a considerable elevation.
The only account I can find is that given by Heuglin,
and the substance of his remarks is as follows : — The Stone
Pheasant is a gregarious bird, living in flocks of from five to
fifteen individuals. It is only met with in rocky ground in the
neighbourhood of cliffs and precipices, always in the proximity
of running water or wells, and seems to prefer the neighbour-
hood of scrub and coarse grass. Flocks of these birds are apt
to escape notice on account of the protective colour of their
plumage, which harmonises perfectly with their surroundings,
and renders them almost invisible. In the breeding-season,
however, and throughout the rainy season, their presence is
generally betrayed by the far-reaching flute-like whistle of the
male ; and in the early morning, and towards evening, one often
falls in with a covey on their way to or from the water. The
way in which these birds get over the rough stony faces of the
hills reminds one of the Chukar {Caccabis chukar), for they hop
THE STONE PHEASANTS. 20I
from point to point in -just the same way, helping themselves
along with their wings. If surprised, they instantly disappear
among the crevices in the rocks, and are then very difficult to
flush; if in scrub or grass, they always prefer, if possible, to
escape by running ; but when pressed by a dog, they rise with a
whirring flight and make for thick cover, where they are in the
habit of drying their plumage after heavy rain or dew. Heuglin
often noticed a peculiar habit of these birds during the breeding-
season, from July to September, when whole flocks are wont to
repair to some particular playground, usually a small bare spot
sheltered by the bushes. The hens are more numerous than
the cocks, and the former withdraw from the scene of action
into the neighbouring cover, while the males strut round the
open space, challenging and answering the chorus from neigh-
bouring parties. Their note may be syllablised as dm-dui^
din-dm, dui-dlu^ dm-dlu, di, which is repeated at longer or
shorter intervals.
Simultaneously the males commence dancing and showing
off, ruffling their neck-feathers, nodding their heads, flirting
their tails like a fan, and trailing their wings along the ground,
while they circle round the playground with hops and springs.
Half-grown young, still partially in the down, were often met
with in January.
The Stone Pheasants generally roost under the shelter of
overhanging rocks. Their flesh is said to be white and sweet,
and HeugUn reckoned them one of the best of African Game-
Birds.
Mr. F. J. Jackson, Captain Shelley, and Mr. T. E. Buckley,
all state that they found this species in pairs, not in flocks ;
but perhaps the birds they met with were breeding, which may
account for the difference between their observations and those
of Heughn, given above. The preponderance of the females
over the males, combined with the curious habit indulged in
by the Stone Pheasants, of repairing to some particular spot,
where the males display their charms and pay court to the
202 LLEN S NATURALIST S LIBRARY.
females, seeiixJhiteoUggest that these birds are polygamous, like
the True Pheasants ; and certainly their behaviour during the
pairing-season resembles that of the Black Game and other
Grouse.
Nest. — Placed on the ground at the foot of a rock and hidden
by coarse grass and scrub.
Eggs — Yellowish-white ; like miniature eggs of the Golden
Pheasant.
THE BAMBOO-PHEASANTS. GENUS BAMBUSICOLA.
Binnbusicola^ Gould, P. Z. S. 1862, p. 285.
Type, B. thoracica (Temm.).
Tail composed of fourteen feathers, rather long and wedge-
shaped, more than three-fourths of the length of the wing.
The first flight-feather is much shorter than the tenth, and
the fifth is generally the longest.
Plumage of sexes similar. Males (and sometimes females)
have a pair of spurs.
I. FYTCH's BAMBOO-PHEASANT. BAMBUSICOLA FYTCHII.
Bambusicola fytchii^ Anderson, P. Z. S. 187 1, p. 214, pi. xi. ;
id. Zool. Res. Yun-nan, Birds, p. 673, pi. liv. (1878);
Hume and Marshall, Game Birds of India, ii. p. 97, pi.
(1879); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 257
(1893).
Bambusicola hopkinsoni^ Godwin- Austen, P. Z. S. 1874, p. 44.
Adult Male and Female. — General colour above brown ; nape
mostly chestnut; feathers of the upper-back dark chestnut
in the middle, and more or less mottled with white; wing-
coverts strongly marked with buff, dark chestnut, and black ;
quills mostly chest juit ; eyebrow-stripes^ sides of the head, and
throat buff; a black band from behind the eye down the side
of the neck ; chest brown, marked with chestnut and white ;
rest of under-parts buff, with heart-shaped black spots on the
sides and flanks
THE BAMBOO-PHEASANTS. 203
J/rt/J^^
BLOOD -PHEASANT.
THE BLOOD PHEASANTS. il^
Feet of the male armed with two or more pairs of spurs;
females devoid of these appendages or with a pair of blunt
knobs.
Plumage quite different in the two sexes.
Only three species are known.
I. THE BLOOD PHEASANT. ITHAGENES CRUENTUS.
Phasianus cruentus, Hardwicke, Tr. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 237
(1822) [male].
Phasianus gardneri^ Hardwicke, Tr. Linn. Soc. xv. p. 167
(1827) [female].
Ithagims cruentus, Wagler, Isis, 1832, p. 1228 ; Elliot, Monogr.
Phasian. ii. pi. 30 (1872); Hume and Marshall, Game
Birds of India, p. 155, pi. (1878).
Ithagenes cruentus, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
268 (1893).
{Plate XVI I.)
Adult Male. — Crown buff or rufous-buff; upper-parts grey,
with white shaft-stripes, washed with green on the wings ; longer
median wing-coverts greeji ; upper tail-coverts widely margined
with crimson ; forehead and feathers round the eye black ;
chin, throat, and cheeks crimson ; rest of the under-parts shad-
ing into pale green, darkest on the sides and belly, the feathers
of the chest and breast being more or less edged with crimson.*
Under tail-coverts crimson, tipped with greenish-white. Total
length, 15-6 inches; wing, 8*3; tail, 6-8; tarsus, 2'6.
Adult Female. — Forehead, chin, and throat f rust-colour ; back
of the head and nape slate-grey; upper-parts pale brown,
under-parts reddish-brown, all finely mottled with darker colour.
Total length, ii"5; wing, 77; tail, 57; tarsus, 2*3.
Range. — Higher regions of Nepal, Native Sikhim, Sikhim,
and Western Bootan ; it also extends into Tibet.
* The crimson edges are most marked in birds from Nepal, much less so,
or absent, in examples from Sikhim.
t I have seen an example in which the chin and throat are washed with
crimson ; perhaps a barren female beginning to assume male plumage.
2i6 Allen's naturalists library.
The peculiar grass-green colour characteristic of the males of
this genus is not seen in any other species of Game-Bird. The
only other bird of this Order with green plumage is the female
of the Red-Crested Wood Partridge {Rollulus roulroul), but in
this instance the colour is much darker.
Ha"bits. — Mr. Hume publishes the following notes by Hodg-
son, which give some idea of the bird's habits : — " This species
is common in Nepal in flocks of twenty to thirty in the same
situations as the Moonal, that is to say, in the higher forests and
in the immediate neighbourhood of the snow, even outside,
though always near, the forests.
"They greatly affect the clumps of Mountain Bamboo, and
feed about on the ground amongst these, much like domestic
fowls, turning over the leaves and grasses with their feet,
scratching about in the ground, and picking up insects, grass,
seeds, grain, and wild fruit.
" They do not eat the bulbous roots of which the Moonal
is so fond. On any alarm the whole flock utter a sharp alarm-
note {ship, ship), and scuttle away.
'' In the winter the birds come southward a little, but never
approach the Great Valley. Numbers are caught in November
and December, and in their own haunts they are by no means
rare. Packs are often seen consisting of as many as seventy
to one hundred birds. They ascend and descend with the
snow, and are easily captured, being fearless and stupid. They
prefer somewhat inaccessible places. Their flight is short and
feeble."
Sir J. Hooker, who met with the Blood Pheasant in Eastern
Nepal and Sikhim at elevations of from 10,000 to 14,000 feet,
remarks : " During winter it appears to burrow under or in holes
amongst the snow ; for I have snared it in January in regions
thickly covered with snow, at an altitude of 12,000 feet. I
have seen the young in May. The principle food of the bird
consists of the tops of the pine and juniper in spring, and the
THE BLOOD PHEASANTS. 2 1'}
berries of the latter in autumn and winter ; its flesh has always
a very strong flavour, and is moreover uncommonly tough ; it
was, however, the only bird I obtained at those great elevations
in tolerable abundance for food, and that not very frequently.
The Bhutias say that it acquires an additional spur every
year ; certain it is that they are more numerous than in any
other bird, and that they are not alike on both legs. I could
not discover the cause of this difference ; neither could I learn
if they were produced at different times. I believe that five
on one leg, and four on the other, is the greatest number I
have observed."
Mr. W. T. Blanford adds, in his notes on the zoology of
Sikhim : — " All that I saw were in the pine-forests round Yeo-
matong, where they were tolerably abundant. They rarely take
flight even when fired at, but run away and often take refuge
on branches of trees. I have shot five or six out of one flock
by following them up ; they usually escape uphill, and if, as
frequently takes place, the flock has been scattered, after a few
minutes they commence calling with a peculiar long cry, some-
thing like the squeal of a Kite. The only other note I heard
was a short monosyllabic note of alarm ; I have heard n bird
utter this when sitting on a branch within twenty yards of
me.
" In their crops I found small fruits, leaves, seeds, and in
one instance what appeared to me to be the spore-cases of a
moss ; there were no leaves or berries of juniper, and the birds
were excellent eating. We did not notice the unpleasant
flavour mentioned by Hooker, probably because better food is
abundant at the season when we shot our birds, and they con-
sequently do not then feed upon pine or juniper."
Nest and Eggs. — Nothing definite is known of the Blood
Pheasant's nesting habits, but the nest, loosely constructed of
grass and leaves, is said to be placed on the ground among
grass and bushes, and to contain ten to twelve eggs.
2i8 Allen's naturalist's library.
iL geoffroy's blood pheasant, ithagenes geoffroyi.
Ithaginis geoffroyi^ Verr. Bull. Soc. d'Acclim. (2), iv. p. 706
(1867) ; Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 42 (1872) ; Elliot, Monogr.
Phas. ii. pi. 31 (1872) ; David and Oustalet, Ois. Chine, p.
401, pi. 113 (1877).
Ithagenes geoffroyi^ Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
269 (1893).
Adult Male. — Differs chiefly from the male of /. cruentus in
having the long crest-feathers grey, with white shafts ; a larger
patch of green on the wing-coverts ; and the chin, throat, and
chest grey. Total length, 17 inches ; wing, 7-7 ; tail, 6 ; tarsus,
2-6.
Adult Female — Differs from the female of /. cniejitus in
having the forehead, sides of the head, chin, and throat brown-
ish ; the upper- and under-parts alike greyish-brown, the latter
finely mottled all over with blackish-brown. Total length, 16
inches; wing, 7*1 ; tail, 5*1 ; tarsus, 2-5.
Range. — Higher regions of Eastern Tibet and Western Sze-
chuen, China.
HaWts — Writing of this species. Abbe David, its original dis-
coverer, says that it lives in more or less numerous flocks near
the limits of the upper forest-regton, preferring the bamboo-
jungles. Ordinarily its food consists of young shoots, leaves,
and seeds, but the stomachs of three birds he killed in April,
whilst the country was still covered with snow, contained
absolutely nothing but moss. These fine birds are in the
habit of perching on trees, and they are extremely sociable
by nature, and after the young are hatched, several old
pairs in company bring up their united famihes and form
one covey.
Nest. — One found on the ground under brushwood in the
forest, at an elevation of 13,500 feet above sea-level.
Eggs. — Buff", spotted with reddish-brown. Average measure-
ments, 1*95 by 1*31 inch.
THE BLOOD PHEASANTS. 219
III. THE NORTHERN BLOOD PHEASANT. ITHAGENES SINENSIS.
Ithagims sinensis^ David, Ann. Sci. Nat. (5), xviii. art. 5, p. i
(1873), and xix. art. 9, p. i (1874); id. and Oustalet,
Ois. Chine, p. 402, pi. 114 (1877).
Ithaginis geoffroyi, Prjev. {nee Verr.), Mongolia, ii. p. 122.
(1876); id. in Rowley's Orn. Misc. ii. p. 421 (1877).
Ithagenes sinensis, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B.Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 270
(1S93).
Adult Male. — Differs from /. geoffroyi in having the sides of
the crest blackish-brown^ and the patch on the wing-coverts
rust-broivn ; chin, throat, and fore-neck blackish-grey with
whitish shaft-stripes, washed on the chin with crimson. Total
length, 1 7 '6 inches; wing, 8; tail, 7 ; tarsus, 2-5.
Adult Female — Differs from the female of /. geoffroyi in
having the upper-parts browner, more like those of /. cruentus,
but paler ; the throat is dirty grey and the breast pale brown-
ish-buff, with scarcely a trace of dark mottlings. Total length,
i6'2 inches; wing, 7-5; tail, 5-9; tarsus, 2-4.
Range. — Higher regions north of the Nan-shan and Kan-su
Mountains, also the Sinling Mountains between Shen-si and
Ho-nan.
Habits. — Prjevalsky says : " We observed this scarce species,
called by the natives ' Sermun,' only in the Kan-su Mountains,
where it principally inhabits the wooded districts, and also
ascends to the alpine regions. We did not obtain a single
specimen ourselves, but bought a skin from the Tanguts, who
told us that these birds, in spring, keep mostly to the edges of
forests and about the alpine bushes, and then feed on a par-
ticular kind of grass. In winter they descend to the middle
and low mountain ranges, where they form small companies,
and pass the night on trees like Crossoptilon auritum.
" The note of the present species consists of a long, perfectly
clear, but not loud whisile."
2 20 ALLEN'S NATURALIST'S LIBRARY.
THE HORNED PHEASANTS. GENUS TRAGOPAN.
Tragopan, Cuvier, Reg. Anim. ed. 2, i. p. 479 (1829).
Type, Z! satyra (Linn.).
Tail composed of eighteen feathers, rather long and wedge-
shaped, the outer pair being about two-thirds of the length of
the middle pair.
First flight-feather shorter than the tenth and much shorter
than the second ; the fourth or fifth rather the longest.
Axillary feathers very long.
Sides of the head nearly naked or thinly feathered in the
males, completely so in the females. The male has a short
crest, an elongate, fleshy, erectile horn inserted above each eye,
and a large gular flap or apron-like wattle, most prominent in
the breeding-season, and especially when the birds are excited
by passion, but scarcely visible in winter. Feet armed in the
male (rarely in the female) with a pair of short, stout spurs.
Plumage of sexes quite different.
I. THE CRIMSON HORNED PHEASANT. TRAGOPAN SATYRA.
Horned Indian Fheasa?it, Edwards, Nat. Hist. B. iii. pi. 116
(1750)-
Meleagris satyra, Linn. S. N. i. p. 269 (1766).
Phasianus cornutus, P. L. S. Miill. Natursyst. Suppl. p. 125
(1776).
Tragopan satyrtis, Cuv. Regne Anrni. 1. p. 479 (1829) ; Gould,
Cent. B. Himal. pi. 62 (1832); Temm. PI. Col. v. pis. 13,
14 [Nos. 543, 544] (1834); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit.
Mus. xxii. p. 271 (1893).
Satyra pennanti, pi. 49, and S. lathami, pi 51, J. E. Gray, 111.
Ind. Zool. i. (1830-32), and S. nepauknsis, id. t.c. ii. pi.
40 (1834).
Ceriornis satyra, G. R. Gray; Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 49
(1868); Elliot, Monogr. Phas. i. pi. 22 (1872); Hume
and Marshall, Game Birds of India, i. p. 137, pk (1878);
Gates, ed. Hume's Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 409(1890).
THE HORNED PHEASANTS. 225
coloured or salmon on the sides, which are spotted or edged
with blue. Total length, 27 inches; wing, icS ; tail, 9*2 ; tar-
sus, 3-1.
Adult Female. — Differs from the female of T. saiyra in having
the general tone of the plumage much greyer, with very little
rufous-buff, even on the wings and under-parts.
Range. — Higher ranges of the western Himalayas from Native
Gurhvval westwards to Cashmere.
Habits. — Writing from Kulu, of this species, which is com-
monly, though incorrectly, known as the '•' Argus " by most
Indian sportsmen, Mr. Young remarks : " They keep in
companies of from two or three to ten or a dozen, not in
compact flocks, but scattered widely over a considerable space
of forest, so that many at times get quite separated, and are
found alone. . . .
" The trees furnishing them with a sufficiency of food, though
the ground be covered with snow many feet in depth, the
severest storms of winter do not, speaking of the species
generally, cause them to change their locality. After a severe
fall of snow, a few occasionally leave for a time their usual
haunts, if in a very bleak quarter, or at any considerable eleva-
tion, and are found in places widely differing, as small patches
of forest on a bare exposed hillside^ narrow wooded ravines,
patches of low brushwood and jungle, and anywhere where the
ground is sheltered from the sun by trees and bushes. Some-
times one is found in a similar situation in fine weather, proba-
bly driven out of its retreat by an Eagle* or Falcon ; but these
are rare exceptions, and they soon again return to their regular
resorts.
"At this season, except for its note of alarm when disturbed,
the Teivar is altogether mute, and is never heard of its own
accord to utter a note or call of any kind, unlike the rest of our
Pheasants, all of which occasionally crow or call at all seasons.
When alarmed, it utters a succession of wailing cries, not un-
* The Nepal Hawk-Eagle {Limnaetiis nipalensis) is an inveterate foe to
both species of Tragopan and to the Moonal.
9 Q
2 26 ALLEN'S NATURALIST'S LIBRARY.
kke those of a young lamb or kid, like the syllables " vvaa, waa,
waa," each syllable uttered slowly and distinctly at first, and
more rapidly as the bird is hard pressed or about to take
wing. . . .
" In spring, as the snow begins to melt on the higher parts
of the hill, they leave entirely their winter resorts, and gradually
separate and spread themselves through the more remote and
distant woods, up to the region of birch and white rhododen-
dron, and almost up to the extreme limits of forest.
" Early in April they begin to pair ; and the males are then
more generally met with than at any other period ; they seem
to wander about a great deal, are almost always found alone,
and often call at intervals all day long. When thus calHng,
the bird is generally perched on the thick branch of a tree, or
the trunk of one which has fallen to the ground, or on a large
stone. The call is similar to the one they utter when dis-
turbed, but is much louder, and only one single note at a time,
a loud energetic "waa," not unlike the bleating of a lost goat,
and may be heard for upwards of a mile. It is uttered at
various intervals, sometimes at every five or ten minutes for
hours together, and sometimes not more than two or three
times during the day, and most probably to invite the females
to the spot.
"When the business of incubation is over, each brood, with
the parent birds, keep collected together about one spot, and
descend towards their winter resorts as the season advances ;
but the forests are so densely crowded with long weeds and grass,
that they are seldom seen till about November, when the vegeta-
tion has partially decayed and admits of a view through the wood.
" They feed chiefly on the leaves of trees and shrubs : of the
former, the box and oak are the principal ones ; of the latter,
ringal and a shrub something like privet. They also eat roots,
flowers, grubs and insects, acorns and seeds, and berries of
various kinds, but in a small proportion compared with leaves.
In confinement they will eat almost any kind of grain.
THE HORNED PHEASANI'S. 227
"Though the most sohtary of our Pheasants, and in their
native forests perhaps the shyest, they are the most easily
reconciled to confinement ; even when caught old they soon
loose their timidity, eating readily out of the hand ; and little
difficulty is experienced in rearing them."
Nest. — Placed on the ground, and roughly constructed of
grass, small sticks, and a few feathers.
Eggs. — Six in number (in the one nest found) ; long ovals,
pointed at the smaller end, with very little gloss but fine
shell ; pale buff, very finely granulated with a darker shade.
Average measurements, 2*5 1 by 1*7 inches.
in. temminck's horned pheasant, tragopan temmincki.
Satyra te?nmi?ickii, J. E. Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. i. pi. 50 (1830-32).
Ceriornis temmincki^ G. R. Gray, Gen. B. iii. p. 499 (1845) ;
Sclater, List of Phas. p. 11, pi. 11 (1863) ; Gould, B. Asia,
vii.pl. 46 (1869); Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. pi. 24(1872);
David and Oustalet, Ois. Chine, p. 118, pi. 112 (1877).
Tragopa7i temmmcki^ Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
275 (1893)-
Adult Male. — Differs chiefly from the two last-mentioned
species in having the occipital crest orange-red, the upper-parts
Indian red, with pearl-grey spots edged with black, and the
under-parts dark Indian red, with a large grey spot near the
extremity of each feather. Horns blue ; gular flap deep blue,
barred with red on the outer margins. Total length, 25 inches ;
wing, 9*9; tail, 7-8; tarsus, 3*2.
Adult Female. — Apparently much like that of T. satyra, but
we have never had the opportunity of examining specimens,
except those living in the aviaries at the Zoological Gardens.
Range. — South-western and Central China, extending from
the Mishmi Hills through Sze-chuen to Southern Shen-si and
Hoo-pih.
Habits. — x\bbe David tells us that this bird fives a sofitary
life on the wooded mountains, seldom leaving the thick covert,
Q 2
2 28 Allen's naturalist's library.
and feeding on seeds, fruits, and leaves. Its cry is very loud,
and most nearly imitated by the syllable oua two or three times
repeated, whence its Chinese name Oua-oua-ky, but it is also
called Ko-ky, or Kiao-ky, meaning Horned Fowl, and Si7i-
tsion-ky, or Starred Fowl, on account of the grey spots adorn-
ing the plumage. The flesh is said to be capital eating. I
am informed that this bird is not met with under about 10,000
feet above the sea-level.
IV. blyth's horned pheasant, tragopan blythi.
Cerioniis blythi, Jerd. P. As. Soc. Beng. 1870, p. 60; Sclater
P. Z. S. 1870, pp. 163, 219, pi. 15; Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi.
47 (1872); Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. pi. 26 (1872);
Hume and Marshall, Game Birds of India, i. p. 152, pi.
(1878) ; Godwin-Austen, P. Z. S. 1879, p. 457, pi. xxxix.
Tragopa?i blythii, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 276
\i893)-
Adult Male. — Head, neck, and chest orange-red ; rest of upper-
parts like those of T. satyra, but with a very dark red patch on
each side of the white spot; sides and flanks similar; breast
and belly smoky-grey or greyish-buff. Horns azure; orbital
skin orange ; gular flap brimstone, tinged with greenish-blue
at the base. Total length, 24 inches ; wing, 10-2; tail, 7-4;
tarsus, 3'2.
Adult Female. — Like the female of T. safyra, but with the
upper-parts blacker and less ferruginous ; the lower-parts paler
and without ferruginous-buff. From the female of T. viela-
nocephalus it is distinguished by having the black and buff
marking of the upper-parts much richer and darker. We have
only seen living female examples of this species, and have had
no opportunity of examining them close at hand.
Range. — Higher ranges of North-eastern Assam, east of the
Burrail range and southwards to North-east Manipur.
Habits. — Mr. G. Damant writes of the " Grey-bellied Trago-
pan," as he calls it: — "This bird is found on most of the
PLATE XVIII.
CABOT S HORNED PHEASANT
THE HORNED PHEASANTS. 229
high ranges in the Naga Hills, notably on the Burrail range,
near the villages of Kohima, Khenomah, and Mozemah.
"It is a permanent resident, and does not appear to migrate.
" It is found on the highest peaks (which attain an altitude
of 9,000 feet in the Burrail range) and probably never descends
to a lower elevation than 5,000 feet. It is said to breed in the
month of April, and to lay three or four eggs.
" During the cold weather it is found at lower elevations
than in the rains, as it descends as the mountain springs dry up.
"It appears to be generally distributed, but is not very
common. Two live examples, now in my possession, eat
worms and a kind of red berry very greedily. So far as I
have observed, it has only one note resembling the syllable
'ak.'
" The Nagas catch these birds by laying a line of snares
across a ravine which they are known to frequent, and then,
with a large semicircle of beaters, driving the birds down to
them. They go as quietly as possible so as not to frighten the
birds sufficiendy to make them take flight, as, if not much
alarmed, they prefer running."
v. CABOT'S HORNED PHEASANT. TRAGOPAN CABOTI.
Ceriornis caboti, Gould, P. Z. S. 1857, p. 161 ; id. B. Asia, vii.
pi. 48 (1858) ; Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. pi. 25 (1872) ;
David and Oustalet, Ois. Chine, p. 419, pi in (1877).
Ceriornis modesfus, David, MS.; David and Oustalet, Ois.
Chine, p. 419 (1877)-
Tragopcm caboti, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 277
(1893).
{Plate XVIII.)
Adult Male. — Upper-parts, sides, and flanks differ from those
of T. blythi in having each feather black down the middle, with
a buff spot at the extremity and an Indian-red patch on each
side ; the basal part of each feather also spotted with white ;
under-parts buff ; naked sides of head and gular flap redd'sh-
230 ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
orange, the latter mnrked on the sides and base with emerald-
green. Total length, 23 inches ; wing, 9-2 ; tail, 6-8 ; tarsus,
2-9.
Adult Female. — We have never been able to examine a female
example except in aviaries, but it appears to resemble the female
of 7! tenunincki.
Range. — South-eastern China ; mountains between Fo-kien
and Kiang-si. ? Also the hills in the interior of Quang-si.
Habits — Abbe David found this somewhat aberrant species
fairly common in the chain of mountains separating Fo-kien
from Kiang-si. It is known to the natives by the same local
names as T. temmincki, which bird it closely resembles in its
habits, and its flesh is equally excellent for the table. Of the
many specimens he examined in October and November not a
single male was seen in female plumage, though at that season
one would expect to find the young males of the year in that
garb, and David came to the conclusion that this species
differed from all the other members of the genus in getting its
fully adult plumage at the first moult.
THE MOONAL PHEASANTS. GENUS LOPHOPHORUS.
Lophophorus^ Temm. Pig. et Gall. ii. p. 355 (18 13).
Type, L. refu likens (Temm.).
Tail composed of eighteen feathers, moderately long (shorter
than the wing) and rounded, the outer pair being somewhat
shorter than the middle pair.
The first flight-feather considerably shorter than the tenth,
the fifth sHghtly the longest.
Male with an elongate crest of semi-upright spade-shaped
plumes or with the top of the head (in Z. sdateri) covered with
curled feathers. A nearly naked space round the eye, and the
feet armed with a stout spur.
Sexes quite different in plumage; most of the upper-parts in
the male brilliantly metallic.
T?IE MOONAL PHKASANTS. 23 1
I. IHE COMMON MOONAL PHEASANT. LOPHOPHORUS
REFULGENS.
Lophophoriis refulgefis, Temm. Pig. et Gall. ii. p. 355 (i 813),
iii. p. 673 (1815); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B, Brit. Mus. xxii.
p. 278 (1893).
Lophophoriis iwpeyanus^ Gould {7iec Latham), Cent. B. Himal.
pis. 60, 61 (1832) ; id. B. Asia, vii. pi. 53 (1850) ; Elliot,
Monogr. Phasian. i, pi. 18 (1872) ; Hume and Marshall,
Game Birds of India, i. p. 125, pi. (1878); Gates, ed.
Hume's Nests and Eggs Ind. B. iii. p. 407 (1890).
Adult Male — Top and sides of the head and crest composed
of spade-shaped feathers, metallic-green shot with purplish-
blue ; back of the neck reddish copper-colour, shading into
golden-green ; mantle shining golden-green ; wings mostly
purplish-blue, changing to bronze-crimson ; lower back pure
white ; under-parts black, with no green gloss except on the
throat; tail light rufous-chestnut. Total length, 26 inches;
wing, II-6; tail, 9; tarsus, 3-2.
Adult Female. — Short crest, top of the head, mantle, rump,
chest, and sides of breast black, with buff centres, mostly with
black lines on each side of the shaft, and with irregular black
bars and mottlings on the wings ; lower back with more or
less concentric irregular bars of black and buff; chin and
throat white ; rest of under-parts mottled with black and buff,
and generally with distinct whitish shaft-stripes; tail black,
barred with rufous. Total length, 23 inches; wing, 10-5;
tail, 7'5 ; tarsus, 2*6.
Range. — Elevated forests of the Himalayas, from Eastern
Afghanistan to Western Bhotan.
Every author writing since 1832 has followed Gould's
original mistake in calling this bird Lophophorus impeya?ius, a
name which, without a shadow of doubt, Latham applied to the
next species. He clearly states in his description that his bird
had the back and wing-coverts rich purple, tipped with green-
232 ALLEN S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
bronze, and the under-parts glossed with green. A glance at
his figure shows that his Z. iuipeyanus was not the present
species, but the bird afterwards described as L. chambaiius by
Col. C. H. T. Marshall.
HaMts. — Mr. Hume writes : "What is essential to this species
is elevation and forest. All our Pheasants ii the Himalayas
may, as Hodgson (I think) pointed out thirty or forty years
ago, be roughly divided into three classes : firstly, those of
the high mountains, to which belong the Moonal, the Snow-
Cocks, the Blood Pheasant, and the Tragopans ; secondly,
those of the mid-region, the Cheer, the Koklass, and the
various Kalij Pheasants ; and thirdly, the Jungle Fowl of the
lower region.
" And you must have vegetation and forest as well as con-
siderable altitudes ; it would be vain to seek the Moonal in the
stony wildernesses of Lahoul and Spiti, or the desert steppes
of Ladakh. I have shot many Moonal in my time, and have
seen a vast number more. There are few sights more striking,
where birds are concerned, than that of a grand old cock
shooting out horizontally from the hillside just below one,
glittering and flashing in the golden sunlight, a gigantic rain-
bow-tinted gem, and then dropping stone-like, with closed
wings, into the abyss below."
From the full and excellent account of this species given by
Mr. Frederic Wilson I extract the following. He says : —
" The Moonal is found on almost every hill of any elevation,
from the first great ridge above the plains to the limits of forest,
and in the interior it is the most abundant of our Game-Birds.
When the hills near Mussooree were first visited by Europeans,
it was found to be common there, and a few may still be seen
on the same ridge eastwards from Landour.
" In summer, when the rank vegetation which springs up in
the forest renders it impossible to see many yards around, few
are to be met with, except near the summits of the great ridges
jutting from the snow, where morning and evening, when they
THK MOONAL PHEASANTS. 233
come out to feed, they may be seen in the open glades of the
forest and on the green slopes above. At that time no one
would imagine they were half so numerous as they really are ;
but, as the cold season approaches, and the rank grass and
herbage dies away, and they begin to collect together, the
woods seem full of them, and in some places hundreds may be
put up in a day's walk.
" In summer, the greater number of the males, and some of
the females, ascend to near the limits of the forests where the
hills attain to a great elevation, and may often be seen on the
grassy slopes a considerable distance above these limits.
" In autumn, they all descend into the forest, frequenting
those parts where the ground is thickly covered with decayed
leaves, under which they search for grubs ; and they descend
lower and lower as winter sets in and the ground becomes
frozen or covered with snow. . . .
"The females keep more together than the males ; they also
descend lower down the hills, and earlier and more generally
leave the sheltered woods for exposed parts or the vicinity of
the villages on the approach of winter. Both sexes are often
found separately in considerable numbers. On the lower part
or exposed side of the hill, scores of females and young birds
may be met with, without a single old male ; while higher up,
or on the sheltered side, none but males may be found. In
summer they are more separated, but do not keep in individual
pairs, several being often found together.
" It may be questioned whether they do pair or not in
places where they are at all numerous ; if they do, it would
appear that the union is dissolved as soon as the female begins
to sit, for the male seems to pay no attention whatever to her
whilst sitting, or to the young brood when hatched, and is
seldom found with them.
" The call of the Moonal is a loud, plaintive whistle, which
is often heard in the forest at daybreak or towards evening,
and occasionally at all hours of the day.
234 Allen's naturalist's library.
" In severe weather numbers may be heard calling in
different quarters of the wood before they retire to roost. The
call has a rather melancholy sound, or it may be that, as the
shades of a dreary winter's evening begin to close on the snow-
covered hills around, the cold and cheerless aspect of Nature,
with which it seems quite in unison, makes it appear so.
" From April to the commencement of the cold season, the
Moonal, though there is nothing of cunning or artifice in its
nature, is rather wild and shy, but this gives way to the all-
taming influence of winter's frosts and snows ; and from
October it gradually becomes less and less wild, until it may
be said to be almost tame, but as it is often found in places
nearly free from underwood, and never attempts to escape
observation by concealing itself in the grass or bushes, it is
perhaps sooner alarmed, and at a greater distance, than other
Pheasants, and may, therefore, appear to a casual observer at
all times a little wild and timid. . . .
" It gets up with a loud fluttering, and a rapid succession of
shrill screeching whistles, often continued till it alights, when
it occasionally commences its ordinary loud and plaintive call
and continues it for some time.
" In winter, when one or two birds have been flushed, all
within hearing soon get alarmed; if they are collected together,
they get up in rapid succession ; if distantly scattered, bird
after bird slowly gets up, the shrill call of each as it rises
alarming others still farther off", till all in the immediate neigh-
bourhood have risen. In the chestnut-forests, where they
often collect in large flocks, and where there is little under-
wood, and the trees, thinly dispersed and entirely stripped of
their leaves, allow of an extensive view through the wood, I
have often stood till twenty or thirty have got up and alighted
in the surrounding trees, and have then walked up to the
different trees and fired at those I wished to procure without
alarming the rest, only those very close to the one fired at
being disturbed at each report. . . .
THE MOONAL PHEASANTS. 235
"The females appear at all times much tamer than the
males. The latter have one peculiarity not common in biids
of this Order : if intent on making a long flight, an old male,
after flying a short way, will often cease flapping his wings, and
soar along with a trembling vibratory motion at a considerable
height in the air, when, particularly if the sun be shining on
his brilliant plumage, he appears to great advantage, and cer-
tainly looks one of the most magnificent of the Pheasant-
tribe.
" In autumn the Moonal feeds chiefly on a grub or maggot
which it finds under the decayed leaves ; at other times on
roots, leaves, and young shoots of various shrubs and grasses,
acorns, and other seeds and berries. In winter it often feeds
in the wheat and barley fields, but does not touch the grain ;
roots and maggots seem to be its sole inducement for digging
amongst it. At all times and in all seasons it is very assiduous
in the operation of digging, and continues at it for hours to-
gether. In the higher forests, large open plots occur quite
free from trees or underwood, and early in the morning, or
towards evening, these may often be seen dotted over with
Moonals, all busily engaged at their favourite occupation.
" The Moonal roosts in the larger forest-trees, but in sum-
mer, when near or above their limits, will often roost on the
ground on some steep rocky spot. The flesh is considered by
some nearly equal to Turkey, and by others as scarcely eatable.
In autumn and winter many, particularly females and young
birds, are excellent, and scarcely to be surpassed in flavour or
delicacy by any of the tribe, while from the end of winter most
are found to be the reverse."
Mr. Hume adds, " Once or twice late in April I have come
upon males nautching, with wings drooped, tail cocked and out-
spread, and breast almost touching the ground, shivering and
quivering spasmodically, and moving backwards and forwards
with tiny steps likeTurkey-cocks, but the birds were always off be-
fore I could really study the peculiarities of their nuptial dance."
236 Allen's naturalist's library.
Nest. — A hollow in the ground, sheltered by some rock,
bush, or the root of a large tree ; little or no lining.
Eggs. — Four or five, sometimes six, in number; oval and
pointed towards the small end ; pale whitish-buff, more or less
thickly freckled all over, except towards the ends, with reddish-
brown. Average measurements, 2-55 by 178 inches.
SUB-SP. a. LOPHOPHORUS MANTOUL
Lophophorus iuipeyanus, var. viantoiii^ Oustalet, Bull. Soc. Zool.
France, xviii. p. 19 (1893).
Adult Male. — Said to differ from the male of Z. refulgeiis in
having no trace of bronze-red on the neck, the interscapular
region purple, and the black under-parts slightly glossed with
green.
SUB-SP. b. LOPHOPHORUS OBSCURUS.
Lophophorus impeyamis, var. obscura, Oustalet, Bull. Soc. Zool.
France, xviii. p. 19 (1893).
Adult Male Said to differ from the male of Z. refulgens \n
having the head, crest, neck, and mantle very deep green,
shading in some lights into black, and the wing-coverts, secon-
daries, and upper tail-coverts greenish-bronze, with some purple,
black, and green reflections.
These two forms were recently founded by Dr. Oustalet on
a couple of trade-skins obtained from a dealer who purchased
them in the London market. Nothing is known respecting
the locality they come from or any other particulars. Dr.
Oustalet assures us that the colour of the feathers cannot have
been chemically changed ; if he is correct in this statement,
these birds, especially the former, may represent some really
distinct form of which we at present know nothing, but it is
much more probable that both these examples are merely
accidental varieties picked out from among the thousands
of ordinary Moonal-skins that are annually imported into the
London market.
THE MOONAL PHEASANTS.
237
II. THE IMPEYAN OR CHAMBA MOONAL PHEASANT. LOPHO-
PHORUS IMPEYANUS.
Impeyan Pheasant, Latham, Gen. Syn. Suppl. i. p. 208, pi. 114
(1787).
Fhasianus impejanus (sic), Latham, Lid. Orn. ii. p. 632 (1790).
Phasianus curvirostris, Shaw, Mus. Lever, p. 10 1, pi. (1792).
Lophophonis iinpeyanus, v. Pelz. Ibis, 1873, P- 120; Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 280 (1893).
Lophophonis chambanus, Marshall, Ibis, 1884, p. 421.
{Plate XIX.)
Adult Male. — Differs chiefly from Z. refiilgens in having the
feathers of the lower back golden-green, shading into purplish-
blue towards their extremities; upper tail-coverts chestnut, tipped
with golden-green, and the under-parts entirely glossed with
metallic golden-green. Total length, 26 inches; wing, 11-5 ;
tail, 9 ; tarsus, 3.
Adult Female. — Unknown.
Range. — Chamba, N.W. Himalayas.
Remarks. — Although to Latham the credit of originally de-
scribing the male of this species undoubtedly belongs. Col.
C. H. T. Marshall may at least claim the honour of having re-
discovered this splendid bird, which had long been overlooked
owing to the unanimity with which ornithologists united L.
impeyanus, Latham, with L. refulgens, Temminck. Latham's
type has unfortunately disappeared, and we have been unable
to find any trace of it, though it at one time formed part of
the collection in the Leverian Museum in London, and was
the same individual described by Shaw as Phasia?tus curvi-
rostris. Most of this collection, which was sold by auction in
London in 1806, was purchased by the Vienna Museum, but
Latham's type of Z. inipeya?ius is no longer to be found.
Colonel C. H. T. Marshall, who re-discovered this species,
which had been quite lost sight of since it was originally de-
scribed by Latham in 1787, writing in the "Ibis" for 1884,
238 ALLEN'S NATUir\LLST'S LIBRARY.
remarks : " Two years ago a Moiial Pheasant was brought into
me from the Birnota Forest (in the Chamba State, N.W. Hima-
laya), which I saw at once was very different from L. impeya?ius
(meaning Z. refulgens). Its bronzed lower back and green
breast made it easily distinguishable from any other known
species. My brother. Colonel George Marshall, R.E., who was
with me, suggested that I should describe it then, but fearing
that it might be a mere variety, I considered it best to wait
until more specimens could be procured. The following spring
Mr. A. L. Scale (to whom I have given a contract to shoot
Monal and Argus for skins in Chamba during the season) told
me that he had had three specimens of what he called ' the
Black-backed Monal ' brought in to him from the same direc-
tion that my bird came from. On comparison I found that
they agreed exactly with mine. This being, I consider, suffi-
cient proof that it is a distinct species, I propose for it the
name of Lophophoriis chambanus, after the Raja of Chamba,
in whose territories it was discovered."
The female has not yet been discovered, but it is greatly to be
hoped that some of the many sportsmen, who go into Cash-
mere on shooting trips, will visit Chamba and secure examples
of both sexes of this rare Moonal.
in. DE l'HUYS'S MOONAL PHEASANT. LOPHOPHORUS
l'huysii.
Lophophorus rhiiysii, Verr. and Geoffr. St.-Hil. Bull. Soc.
Acclim. (2), iii. p. 223, pi. (1866), iv. p. 706 (1867);
Sclater, P. Z. S. 1868, p. i, pi. i. ; Elliot, Monogr. Phasian.
i.pl. 19(1872); Gould, B. Asia, vii.pl. 54(1873); David
and Oustalet, Ois. Chine, p. 403, pi. 110(1877); Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. p. 281 (1893).
Adult Male. — Like L. refulgeiis, but differs chiefly in having
the crest purplish-bronze and composed of ordinary elongate
feathers; lower back white ; the rump-feathers metallic golden-
THK MOONAL PHEASANTS. 239
green, 7nargi7ied with white, and the tail bluish-green, glossed
with purplish-blue; the middle of the feathers inostly black,
irregularly spotted on each side of the shaft with ivhite. Total
length, 30 inches ; wing, 12-6; tail, 10-3; tarsus, 3-3.
Adult Female. — Easily recognised from the female of L. reful
gens by having the whole of the lower back pure white.
Range. — Western Sze-chuen in West China, extending to
Eastern Koko-nor.
HaMts.— Abbe David tells us that "this splendid Moonal in-
habits the highest regions of Moupin and Eastern Koko-nor, as
well as the western frontier of Sze-chuen, where it is met with in
small flocks on the grassy slopes above the region of forest, roost-
ing in the trees at night. Its general food consists of vegetable
substances, particularly succulent roots, which it digs up with
ease by the help of its strong beak. As it searches in particular
for those of a Fritillaria commonly known as Fae-mow, the
natives call it by the name of Pae-moiv-ky. In its native country
the adult male is also called Ho-tha?i-ky (Shining Metallic-Fowl)
on account of its metallic plumage. It is a very shy bird, of ex-
tremely powerful flight, and its cry, which one hears in the early
morning and during rain, consists of three or four separate
piercing notes uttered at intervals." From certain information
that Abbe David received, he believed that this Moonal is also
found in Yunan and in Quei-chow, and it is certain, in any case,
that it is found throughout the greater part of Eastern Tibet, but
it is everywhere rare, and it cannot be long before it completely
disappears : for the Chinese are constantly in pursuit of it, and
catch these splendid birds by means of snares for the sake of
their delicate flesh.
This bird is found at a higher altitude than any of the other
species, being met with on the rocky plateaux near the limit
of perpetual snow, at elevations of about 16,000 feet above the
sea-level. It roosts on the stunted rhododendrons or descends
to the pine-forests.
240 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
IV, sclater's moonal pheasant. LOPHOPHORUS
SCLATERI.
Lophophorus sdateri, Jerdon, Ibis, 1870, p. 147, nnd J. As.
Soc. Beng. 1870, p. 61 ; Sclater, P. Z. S. 1870, p. 162, pi.
xiv.; Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. pi. 20 (1872); Humeand
Marshall, Game Birds of India, i. p. 136, pi. (1878);
Godwin-Austen, P. Z. S. 1879, p. 681, pi. li. ; Ogilvie-
Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 282 (1893).
Chalcophasis sclateri, Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 55 (1873).
Adult Male. — Top of the head covered with curly golden-
green feathers, changing into blue ; mantle and wings mostly
steel-green, changing into purple ; lower back, rump, and upper
tail-coverts 7vhife, the two former with black shaft-stripes ;
tail chestmit^ with a wide white ba7id at the extremity^ and the
basal part of the feathers black, barred and mottled with buff.
Total length, 26 inches; wing, ii"8; tail, 8*2; tarsus, 3*1.
Adult Female. — Chiefly distinguished from those already
described by having the lower back/^/i? ochraceous-white, finely
mottled with dark brown ; tail black, with six or seven narrow
whitish-cross bars, and tipped with the same colour.
Range. — Hills to the east and south-east of Sadiya, in the
extreme north-east of Assam.
Very few specimens have been obtained of this extremely
scarce Moonal, and most, if not all, of the known examples
have been brought down by the hill-tribes (Mishmis and
Abors) to the fair held annually at Sadiya, the most easterly
station in Assam.
THE CRESTLESS FIRE-BACKED PHEASANTS. GENUS
ACOMUS.
Acoimis^ Reichenb. Nat. Syst. Vog. p. xxx. (1852).
Type, A. erythrophthabnus (Raffl.).
Tail composed of fourteen feathers, rather short and laterally
compressed, or hen-like ; the third pair being somewhat longer
than the central ones, and very much longer than the outer pair.
THE CRESTLESS FIRE-BACKED PHEASANTS. 241
First flight-feather considerably shorter than the secoiul,
which is about equal to the tenth ; sixth rather the longest.
No crest in either sex.
A large naked red patch on each side of the head.
Feet, in both sexes, armed with a stout pair of spurs. Female
black.*
I. THE MALAYAN CRESTLESS FIRE-BACK. ACOMUS
ERYTHROPHTHALMUS.
Phasiimns erythrophthalmus^ Raffles, Tr. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 321
(1822).
Phasia?ius piirpureus, J. E. Gray, 111. Ind. Zool. i. pi. 42
(1830-32) [female].
Euplocamiis erythrophthalnius, Sclater, in Wolfs Zool. Sketches
(2), pi. 34 (1861); Sclater, List of Phasian. p. 7, pi. 8
(1863) ; Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. ii. pi. 28 (1872).
Acomus erytlirophthabnuSy Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. 283 (1893).
Adult Male — General colour of plumage black, glossed with
purplish and steel-blue, and finely mottled with white ; lower
back fiery bronzy-gold, shading into bronzy-red on the rump ;
sides finely mottled with white ; tail pale rufous-buff. Total
length, 20 inches; wing, 9-5 ; tail, 6*4; tarsus, 3.
Adult Female. — Plumage entirely black, glo.ssed with purplish
or steel-blue. Total length, 18-5 inches ; wing, 8-4 ; tail, 5*4 ;
tarsus, 2*8.
Range. — Southern part of the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra.
Has been recorded from Java, but probably in error.
Habits — Practically nothing has been recorded about the
habits of this bird, and the only examples obtained are those
snared by natives. It is only known that the Malayan Crest-
less Fire-Back frequents the dense damp forests, and we may
fairly assume that its habits are much like those of its ally the
Crested Fire-Back, described below.
* The female of A. inornatns is still unknown.
242 ALLEN'S NATURALIST'S LILRAKV.
The first examples of this species were obtained in Sumatra
by Sir S. Raffles, and skins are generally to be found in collec-
tions of birds made by native collectors in the vicinity of
Malacca, where it would seem to be fairly common.
Nothing is known of the eggs or nidification of this species.
IL THE BORNEAN CRESTLESS FIRE-BACK. ACOMUS
PVRONOTUS.
Euplocomus erythrothalmus {sic), J. E. Gray {nee Raffles),
111. Ind. Zool. ii. pi. 38, fig. I (1834).
Alectrophasis pyronota, G. R. Gray, List Gall. Brit. Mus. p.
26 (1844).
Euploco7nus pyronotus, Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. ii. pi. 29
(1872).
Acomus pyronotus, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 284
(1893)-
Adult Male. — Distinguished from the male of A. erythro-
phthalmus in having the neck and mantle grey, finely mottled
with black, and with white shafts ; the chest and breast black,
with white shaft-stripes. Total length, 20 inches; wing, 9-3;
tail, 57; tarsus, 3-3.
Adult Female. — Quite similar to the female of A. erythro-
phthalmus. Total length, 18-5 inches; wing, 8-4; tail, 5;
tarsus, 3*15.
Range. — Sarawak, Borneo.
Mr. C. Hose tells us that this species is a low-country bird
but is decidedly rare, and that its native name is " Singgier."
III. THE BLACK CRESTLESS FIRE-BACK. ACOMUS
INORNATUS.
Acovius ifiorfiatus, Salvadori, Ann. Mus. Civ. Genov. xiv. p.
250(1879); id. P. Z. S. 1879, p. 651, pl.xlviii.; Biittikofer,
Notes Leyd. Mus. ix. p. 77 (1887) ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B.
Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 285 (1893).
Adult Male.— Much like the females of the last two species,
being e?itirely black, but all the feathers of the upper-parts are
THK CRESTED FIRE-BACKED IMIEASANTS. 243
distinctly and sharply edged with shining dark bluish-green,
producing a scaled appearance. Total length, i8'5 inches;
wing, 8*9; tail, 6*5; tarsus, 2"8.
Adult Female. — Has not yet been obtained.
Eange. — Mount Singalan and the highlands of Padang,
Western Sumatra.
Remarks. — I was at first inclined to believe that the male of
this most interesting species, discovered by Dr. Beccari, had
been wrongly sexed, in spite of that naturalist's assertions to
the contrary. This was certainly not the case, for a second un-
doubted juale example, perfectly similar to the type, has since
been obtained by Dr. C. Klaesi, and is now in the Leyden
Museum.
It is exceedingly remarkable that the male of this species
should so closely resemble the females of the other species, and
it will be extremely interesting to see, when the female of the
Black Crestless Fire-Back (in this case somewhat of a misnomer)
is discovered, whether it is black or reddish-brown, as Dr.
Beccari imagined. He relied on the testimony of natives and
on feathers which had been found near their traps, which be-
longed to specimens which had unfortunately been eaten by
some carnivorous animal. It seems likely that these feathers
may have belonged to females of Lophura rufa, in which, as
we shall see below, the plumage and tail-feathers nearly answer
to the description " reddish-brown."
The native name for this bird is said to be Ajam merah mafa.
THE CRESTED FIRE-BACKED PHEASANTS. GENUS
LOPHURA.
LopJmra^ Fleming, Philos. Zool. ii. p. 230 (1822),
Type, L. rufa (Raffles).
Tail rather long, composed of sixteen feathers, laterally com-
pressed as in the Fowls ; the third pair somewhat longer than
the middle ones, and very much longer than the outer pair.
R 2
244 ALT-ENS NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
First flight-feather shorter than the second, which is about
equal to the tenth ; fifth and sixth slightly the longest.
A large naked red or blue patch on each side of the head,
and a large wattle of the same colour on each side of the throat.
Male with a full crest, composed of more or less long bare
shafts, with a bunch of plumes at the tip. Feet armed with a
pair of stout spurs (absent in the female).
I. THE MALAYAN CRESTED FIRE-BACK. LOPHURA RUFA.
Phasianus Ignitus^ Raffles {nee Shaw), Trans. Linn. See. xiii. p.
320 (1822) [male]; Vieillot, Tabl. Encycl. Meth. i. p. 363,
pi. 237, fig. 2 (1823).
Phasia7ius rufus, Raffles, Trans. Linn. Soc. xiii. p. 321 (1822)
[female].
Euploeamiis vieilloti, Gray, List Gen. B. 2nd ed. p. 77 (1841) ;
Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 15 (1852) ; Sclater and Wolf, Zool.
Sketches (2), pi. 36 (1867); Hume and Marshall, Game
Birds of India, i. p. 213, pi. (1878).
Etiplocamus ignihis^ Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. ii. pi. 26 (1872).
Etcplocamus sumatrariiis^ Dubois, Bull. Ac. Belg. (2), xlvii.
p. 825 (1879).
Lophura rufa^ Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 286
(1893).
Adult Male. — General plumage, including the crest, back, and
under-parts, black, beautifully glossed with purplish-blue ; lower
back and rump fiery bronzy-red ; feathers of the sides and flanks
with ivhite (or sometimes chestnut) shaft-stripes'^ ; middle pairs
of tail-feathers white; naked sides of the head and wattles
bright smalt-blue; feet bright red. Total length, 27 inches,
wing, ii'6; tail, 10-2; tarsus, 4*3.
Adult Female. — General colour above chestnut, redder and
darker on the neck and finely mottled with black ; feathers of
* In some examples, especially in Sumatran birds (the Ettphcamtis
srtmatraiius, Dubois, quoted above), the shaft-stripes are rufous-buff or
chestnut instead of white, but this difference is not dependent on locality,
and is apparently of no specilic importance.
THE CRESTED EIRE-BACKED PHEASANTS. 245
neck and chest chestnut, edged on the sides with white ; those
of the breast and sides of the belly black, usually mottled with
chestnut and margined with white. Tail dark chestiuit ; naked
sides of the head and feet like those of the male, but paler.
Total length, 24 inches; wing, 10 ; tail, 7*6 : tarsus, 3*6.
Range. — Siam and Southern Tenasserim southwards, the
Malay Peninsula, and Sumatra.
Habits. — The late Mr. W. Davison, who is probably the only
European who ever shot this bird in a wild state, says : " These
birds frequent the thick evergreen forests in small parties of
five or six ; usually there is only one male in the party, the rest
being females, but on one or two occasions I have seen two
males together ; sometimes the males are found quite alone.
I have never heard the males crow, nor do I think that they
ever do so ; when alarmed, both males and females have a
peculiar sharp note, exceedingly like that of the large Black-
backed Squirrel {Scmrus bicolor). The males also continually
make a whirring sound with their wings, which can be very
well imitated by twirling rapidly between the hands a small
stick, in a cleft of which a piece of stiff cloth has been trans-
versely placed. I have often discovered the whereabouts of a
flock by hearing this noise. They never come into the open,
but confine themselves to the forests, feeding on berries, tender
leaves, and insects and grubs of all kinds, and they are very
fond of scratching about after the manner of domestic poultry,
and dusting themselves. When disturbed, they run rapidly
away, not in different directions, but all keeping much together ;
they rise at once before a dog, getting up with a great flutter,
but when once well on the wing, fly with a strong and rapid
flight ; they seldom alight again under a couple of hundred
yards, and usually on the ground, when they immediately start
running.
" I noticed on one occasion a very curious thing. I had
stalked an Argus, and while waiting to obtain a good shot,
246 Allen's naturalist's library.
I heard the peculiar note, a sort of ^chukun, chiihm,' followed
by the whirring noise made by the male Fire-Back, and imme-
diately after saw a fine male Fire-Back run into the open space,
and begin to chase the Argus round and round its clearing.
The Argus seemed loath to quit its own domain, and yet not
willing to fight, but at last, being hard pressed, it ran into the
jungle. The Fire-Back did not attempt to follow, but took up
a position in the middle of the clearing, and recommenced the
whirring noise with his wings, evidently as a challenge, where-
upon the Argus slowly returned, but the moment it got within
the cleared space the Fire-Back charged it, and drove it back
into the jungle, and then, as before, took up his position in the
middle of the space and repeated the challenge. The Argus
immediately returned, but only to be again driven back, and
this continued at least a dozen times, and how much longer it
would have continued I cannot say, but a movement on my
part attracting the birds' attention, they caught sight of me,
and instantly, before I could fire, disappeared into the jungle.
The Argus never made the slightest attempt to attack the Fire-
Back, but retreated at once on the slightest movement of the
latter towards it, nor did I see the Fire-Back strike the Argus
with either bill, wings, or spurs."
Nest. — Nothing is known of the nidification.
Eggs. — An egg laid in confinement, in July, is pale brownish-
buff, like that of the Game-Fowl, but larger, with little or no
gloss, and covered with minute pores.
II. THE BORNEAN CRESTED FIRE-BACK. LOPHURA IGNITA.
Phasianus Ignitus, Shaw, Nat. Misc. ix. pi. 321 {c. 1787).
Gallus macartneyi, Temm. Pig. et. Gall. ii. p. 273 (1813); iii.
p. 663 (1815).
Euplocomiis nobilis, Sclat. P. Z. S. 1863, p. 118, pi. xvl ;
Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. ii. pi. 27 (1872).
Lophura ignita, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 288
(1S93).
TIIK CRESTED FIRE-BACKED PHEASANIS. 247
Adult Male. — Differs chiefly from the male of Z. rufii in
having the loiver breast and upper belly fiery bronzy-gold^ and
the middle pairs of tail-feathers buff. Total length, 23 inches ;
wing, io'5; tail, 8-4; tarsus, 4*4.
Adult Female. — Differs from the female of Z. rufa in having
the ground-colour of the upper-parts darker chestnut than the
neck, and the tail black. Total length, 22 inches ; wing, 9-8 ;
tail, 7*6 ; tarsus, 3*6,
Range. — Forests of Borneo.
HaMts. — This splendid Fire-Back is a bird of the low country,
but nothing further has been recorded of its habits, though
there is no reason to believe that they differ from those of its
Malayan ally Z. rufa. It is known in Sarawak by the native
name of " Sempidan."
jsToTE. — In the National Collection there is a skin of a male example of
a Lophura which was sent by Mr. J. R. Reeves from China, and has evi-
dently been in captivity, some of the flight-feathers of both wings having
been cut, and a second perfectly similar example of this bird was recently
seen living in the aviary of the late Capt. E. W. Marshall at Marlow. Mr.
D. G. Elliot is of opinion that the former specimen is a hybrid between
LopJmra rufa and L. ignita, but I can see no reason for this conjecture, and
should not be surprised if it were to prove to be a species distinct from either
of the species mentioned. The bird in the National Collection resembles
the male of L. ignita, but is distinguished by having the feathers down the
middle of the breast and abdomen entirely black, those on the sides mar-
gined and largely mixed with black, only the middle part of some of them
being rufous-chestnut, and the middle pair of tail-feathers white.
III. DIARD's CRESTED FIRE-BACK. LOPHURA DIARDI.
Euplocomus diardi, Bonap. C. R. xhii. p. 415 (1856; ex
Temminck MS.).
Diardigallus prcelatus, Bonap. C R. xliii. p. 415 (1856);
Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 21 [male only] (i860).
Diardigallus fasciolatus, Blyth, J. As. Soc Bang, xxvii. p. 280
(1858).
Euplocomus prcclatus, Sclater, List of Phas. p. 6, pi. 6 (1863) ;
id. and Wolf, Zool. Sketches (2), pi. 35 (1867); Elliot,
Monogr. Phasian. ii. pi. 24 (1872).
248 aixen's naturalist's library.
Lophitra diardi, Ogilvie-Grant, Cat B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 290
(1893).
Adult Male. — Head, throat, and crest black, the latter slightly
glossed with steel-blue; neck, mantle, and chest grey, very finely
mottled with black; wing-coverts with a black white- edged
band near the extremity ; lower back buff, glossed with gold ;
rump-feathers black, glossed with purplish-blue, widely margined
with dark crimson, shot with bronzy-red ; rest of under-parts
and tail, including the middle pairs of feathers^ blacky glossed
with greenish-blue ; naked skin on sides of head and wattles
red. Total length, 24 inches; wing, 9*8; tail, 13; tarsus, 3*4.
Adult lemale. — Differs conspicuously from the female of the
other species in having the wing-coverts and scapulars blacky
with wide-set bujf bands ; the breast and sides of the belly
chestnut ; and the rest of the under-parts brownish-black, mar-
gined with white. Total length, 21 inches; wing, 8 "8; tail,
8"3 ; tarsus, 2 "9.
Range. — Shan States, Siam, Cambodia, and Cochin China.
Hybrids between this species and the Lineated Kalij
Pheasant {Genn.^us lineatus) have been bred in the Zoological
Society's Gardens, London.
Nothing is known of the habits of this splendid Fire-Back,
but it is captured and brought down from the interior to
Bangkok, whence it is imported to this country in some num-
bers, and is by no means an uncommon bird in aviaries.
THE WATTLED PHEASANTS. GENUS LOBIOPHASIS.
Lobiophasis, Sharpe, Ann. Mag. N. H. (4), xiv. p. 373 (1874).
Type, Z. biilweri, Sharpe.
Tail composed of thirty-iwd^ feathers in the male {tiventy-
* By far the largest numl^er of tail-feathers found in any of the Phasi-
anidcc. One of the Eared- Pheasants [Crossoptilon aiiritiim) has twenty-
four, and the smallest numlier occurs in the Painted Quails {Excalfactoria)^
which have only eight.
PLATE XX.
BULWER'S WATTLED PHEASANT.
THE WATTLED PHEASANTS. 249
eight in \k\Q female), compressed and pointed ; the middle pairs
being very much curved and more than twice as long as the
outer pairs, which have little or no web. In all the feathers,
the shaft extends considerably beyond the web, and in the
outer pairs it terminates in a sharp point.
The first flight-feather is much shorter than the second,
which is about equal to the tenth ; the fifth is somewhat the
longest.
In the male the head is almost entirely naked, with the ex-
ception of a few feathers down the middle of the crown, and it
is ornamented with three pairs of wattles ; a large pair, one on
each side of the head, a very large one on each side of the
throat, and a small pair at the base of the upper mandible.
The feet in the male are armed with a pair of short stout
spurs.
The plumage of the sexes is quite different. Only one
species is known.
I. bulwer's wattled pheasant, lobiophasls bulwerl
Lobiophasis buhveri, Sharpe, Ann. Mag. N. H. (4), xiv. p. 373
(1874); Gould, B. Asia,vii. pi. 13 (1875); Sclater, P. Z. S.
1876, p. 465, pi. xliv. ; Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus.
xxii. p. 292 (1893).
Lobiophasis castaneicaudatus^ Sharpe, P. Z. S. 1877, p. 94 ;
Gould, B. Asia, vii. pi. 12 (1877).
[Plate XX.)
Adult Male. — Neck and chest dark crimson ; rest of plumage
black, each feather margined with steel-blue ; tipper tail-coverts
atid tail pure white ; bill horn-colour ; naked skin of head
and wattles bright blue ; feet and toes red. Total length, 35
inches; wing, 10*3; tail, 18; tarsus, 3*5.
Immature Male (Z. castaneicaiidatus). — Differs from the adult
in having the top of the head, chin, and throat thickly covered
with purplish-black feathers mixed with rufous, the blue wattles
but slightly developed; the dark crimson on the neck and
250 ALLEN'S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
chest much brighter, and the upper tail-coverts and tail chest )iut^
and shaped hke those of the female.
Adult Female. — Above brownish-buff, incHning to rufous on
the wings, and all finely mottled with black ; below rufous and
similarly mottled ; upper tail-coverts and tail chestnut, with
some fine black markings. Total length, 20 inches ; wing, 9*4 ;
tail, 6*4 ; tarsus, 37.
Range. — Mountain forests of Sarawak, Northern Borneo.
The male of this magnificent Pheasant, with its curious
wattled head and many-feathered pure white tail, is strikingly
different from all the other birds of its kind. It was first
obtained by Sir Hugh Low, who gave the specimen to Gover-
nor Sir Henry Bulwer (after whom it was named), in the
mountains bordering the Lawas River in 1874, and since
that date a number of specimens have been sent to Europe,
but good skins, with perfect tail-feathers, are difficult to obtain,
and still command a high price in this country.
A few years after Dr. Sharpe described the first examples, he
received from the same locality male and female specimens,
which, in the opinion of Mr. Sclater and the late Mr. Gould,
represented a second and perfectly distinct species of Lobio-
phasis. This male had the tail chestnut, comparatively short,
and much like that of the female of Z. buhveri. Acting
against his own better judgment. Dr. Sharpe described this
bird under the name of Z. castaneicaudatus^ but shortly after
another male example arrived, in which the chestnut tail-
feathers were being replaced by the white feathers of Z. buhveri,
clearly showing that the chestnut-tailed bird is merely the
immature of the white-tailed form. We are informed that the
perfect white tail is not assumed till the male is in his third
year, but this requires confirmation, and it appears to me more
probable that the full plumage is assumed in the second
year.
Habits. — Very little is known about the Wattled Pheasant,
THE EARr<:D-PHEASANTS. 251
for it frequents the dense mountain forests, is extremely shy,
and very rarely seen, all the specimens obtained being caught
by means of snares.
Mr. C. Hose writes : "Bulvver's Pheasant is only found on
the mountains, though it does not ascend very high, not
extending beyond 2,000 feet as far as I know. The actions of
this bird are entirely Fowl-like, and it is much more like a
Jungle Fowl in its ways than a Pheasant. Wolf's picture in the
' Birds of Asia ' gives a wrong idea of the carriage of the bird,
and I very much doubt whether it ever sits up in the way
there depicted. On the contrary, it skulks along through the
jungle, carrying its tail in a curve like a Fowl. It is often
trapped by the natives and is essentially a ground-bird, seldom
taking flight, but preferring to run through the jungle to save
itself. I believe that it takes quite three years before the full
white tail is assumed. Native name ' Bag;ier.' "
THE EARED-PHEASANTS. GENUS CROSSOPTILON.
Crossoptilo?i^ Hodgson, J. As. Soc. Beng. vii. p. 864 (1838).
Type, C. tibetaniim, Hodgson.
Tail composed of hventy to twenty-foiw feathers (the number
varying in the different species), large, full, ^nd rounded, the
middle pair being twice as long as the outer pair. The
extremities of the middle pair much curved, the webs long
and decomposed.
First flight-feather shorter than the second which is equal to
the ninth or tenth ; fifth or sixth somewhat the longest.
Sides of the face naked, red, and covered with small
papillae.
Plumage of sexes similar ; ear-coverts much lengthened and
forming a long white tuft on each side of the head.
Feet in male armed with short stout spurs.
252 ALLEN'S naturalist's LIBRARY.
I. Hodgson's eared-pheasant, crossoptilon
TIBETANUM.
Phasianus {Crossoptilon) tibetanus^ Hodgson, J. As. Soc. Beng.
vii. p. 864, pi. 46(1838); id. Ind. Rev. iii. p. 593, pi.
(1839)-
Crossoptilon tibetafium, Sclater, List of Phasian. p. 6, pi. 4
(1863); Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. pi. 14 (1872); David
and Oustalet, Ois. Chine, p. 407, pi. 107 (1877); Hume
and Marshall, Game Birds of India, i. p. 115, pi. (1878) ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 293 (1893).
Crossoptilofi auritum, G. R. Gray {/lec Pallas), Gen. B. iii. p.
495, pi. cxxv. (1845).
Crossoptilon droiiynii, Verreaux, N. Arch. Mus. Bull. iv. p. 85,
pi. iii. (1868); Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. p. xviii. pi. 15
(1872).
Adult Male. — Crown covered with short, soft, curly black
feathers ; long ear-tufts white, as in all the other species ; whole
plumage above and hoXo"^ pure white, shading into grey on the
longer wing- and tail-coverts; quills brownish ; tail with tiventy
feathers, black, glossed with dark greenish-blue and deep
purple towards the extremity.* Total length, 36 inches ; wing,
12-4; tail, i8-6; tarsus, 3*9.
Adult Female. — Perfectly similar in plumage, but devoid of
spurs.
Eange. — Mountains of Western China and Eastern Tibet.
The typical specimen described by Hodgson was brought
into Nepal by an envoy who had been to Pekin, but the
exact locality where the bird was obtained was never ascer-
tained.
Habits. — This splendid white Pheasant inhabits the pine-
forests at elevations varying from io,ooo to 12,000 feet above
* In Hodgson's type the six outer pairs of tail-feathers have an oblong
white spot on the outer web running nearly parallel to the shaft, but these
markings are not symmetrical on the two sides, and, in all other specimens
that we have examined, are entirely absent.
THE EARED-PHEASANTS. 253
sea-level. It is extremely sociable in its habits, and it is said
that forty or fifty may be found, roosting in company, on the
pine-trees.
Abbe David informs us that this white Crossoptilon is only
met with in some of the wooded localities of China, on the
high mountains of Western Sze-chuen, in the neighbourhood
of Moupin and Ta-tsien-lou, where its existence is protected
by the superstitious respect of the natives. It is a very gre-
garious bird, loving to live in company with many of its
kind, even when engaged in rearing its young, and it does
not wander far from the place where it is bred. It feeds on
leaves, roots, grains, and insects. Fortunately for its safety, the
flesh of this Eared-Pheasant is but moderately good to eat, and
sportsmen prefer the smaller Pheasants {Fhasia?ius) as game,
since they are more widely distributed and easier to procure.
II. THE WHITE-TAILED EARED-PHEASANT. CROSSOPTILON
LEUCURUM.
Crossoptilon leiiairmn^ Seebohm, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, No. iv.
p. xvii. (1892); Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p.
294 (1893).
Adult Male. — Distinguished from C. tibetajuun by having the
greater part of the tail-feathers white, all being pure white,
with black extremities glossed with purplish-blue.
Adult Female. — Has the white on the tail-feathers less exten-
sive, and the middle and outer pairs have the inner webs grey,
while all are tipped and margined with dark grey.
Eange. — Eastern Tibet; met with between the Sok Pass
and Chiamdo, also on the plateau between the Sok Pass and
Lhassa.
The typical examples of this apparently perfectly distinct
species were obtained by Captain Bower and Dr. Thorold
between the Sok Pass and Chiamdo, and similar specimens
were collected by Prince Henry of Orleans and M. Bonvalot a
few years before on the plateau between the Sok Pass and
254 ALT.EN\S NATURALISTS LIBRARY.
Lhassa. The latter birds are now in the Paris Museum, and
Dr. Oustalet regards them as merely varieties of C. tibetanum^
or hybrids between this species and the slate-grey C. aurilum,
Pallas, which has the greater part of the outer tail-feathers white.
We entirely agree with Mr. Seebohm in believing this con-
clusion to be a mistake, for C. auritum, we may further remark,
has the tail composed of twenty-four, not twenty feathers.
It appears that the range of C. leucuruin overlaps that of C.
tibeta7ium in Eastern Tibet, and it may be that in this locality
the two forms interbreed, so it is just possible that Hodgson's
type of C. tibetanufn^ which has some white markings on the
six outer pairs of tail-feathers (see previous footnote, p. 252)
may be a cross-bred bird of this description, but the exact
locality where it was obtained is quite uncertain.
III. THE MANCHURIAN EARED-PHEASANT. CROSSOPTILON
MANCHURICUM.
Crossoptilon auritum sive mantcJiuricuni^ Swinhoe, P. Z. S.
1862, p. 286, and 1863, p. 306.
Ctvssopfilon aurif/un, Sclater {nee Pallas), List of Phasian. p.
6, pi. 5 (1863); Milne-Edwards, N. Arch. Mus. Bull. i.
p. 12, pi. i. figs. I and 2 (1865); Gould, B. Asia, vii. p.
22 (1870).
Crossoptilon mantchuricum, Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. pi. 16
(1872); David and Oustalet, Ois. Chine, p. 405, pi. 106
(1877); Sclater, P. Z. S. 1879, p. 118, pi. viii. fig. 5;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. p. 294 (1893).
Adult Male. — Differs chiefly from C. tibetanum in having an
indistinct white band across the crown, the neck black, shading
into brown on the mantle, the lower back and rump dirty
white ; chest blackish-brown ; rest of under-parts lighter. Tail
with twenty-tivo feathers, the basal part dirty white and the
ends brownish, glossed with rich purplish-blue. Total length,
40 inches ; wing, 127 ; tail, 22*6 ; tarsus, \'\.
Adult Female. — Differs only in having no spurs.
THE KARED-PHKASANTS. 25 S
Range. — Mountains of Manchuria and Pechi-li.
Svvinhoe says : " This bird is called Ho-ke by the natives.
The character Ho is a peculiar one, and especially applied to
this bird from ancient times. It does not mean Fire^ as Mr.
Saurin states in his account of the bird in the ' Proceedings of
the Zoological Society.' Ke means Foivl. The feathers of
this bird were formerly worn by Tartar warriors."
According to Abbe David, the brown Crossoptilon, which is
known by the name of Hoky in Pekin, is resident on some of
the wooded parts of the mountains of Pechi-li, but for some
years past it has become very rare, and it cannot be long before
it completely disappears, partly on account of the constant
persecution it is subjected to, and partly from the destruction
of the woods which form its headquarters. It is an extremely
gentle and sociable bird, living in large flocks, and subsisting
chiefly on grain, buds, leaves, roots, and insects. It seems well
adapted for domestication, the more so as it is easily fed ; but
in captivity one must provide the shade of a park and the
neighbourhood of a clear stream of water — that is, similar sur-
roundings to those it is accustomed to in its wild state.
Mr. Misselbrook writes : " Hens lay from twelve to sixteen
eggs each at a setting, the time of incubation being about
twenty-eight or thirty days." This refers, of course, to birds
in captivity.
Eggs. — Uniform pale stone-colour. Measurements, 2*3 by
17 inches.
IV. PALLAS' EARED-PHEASANT. CROSSOPTILON AURITUM.
Phasiamis auritus, Pallas, Zoogr. Rosso-Asiat. ii. p. 86 (181 1).
Crossoptilon auritum, Elliot, Monogr. Phasian. i. pi. 17 (1872) ;
Prjevalsky, in Rowley's Orn. Misc. ii. p. 420 (1877):
David and Oustalet, Ois. Chine, p. 406, pi. 108 (1877);
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 295 (1893).
Crossoptilon coerulescens, David, MS. ; Milne-Edwards, C. R.
Ixx. p. 538 (1870).
256 Allen's naturallst's library.
Adult Male. — General colour slate-grey ; an indistinct white
band bordering the black crown behind; chin and throat
white ; tail composed of twe?ity-four feathers, the six outer
pairs with the basal three-quarters white and the ends black,
gloised with purple. Total length, 40 inches; wing, 12-4;
tail, 21 ; tarsus, 4.
Adult Pemale. — Like the fnale^ but devoid of spurs.
Range. — The mountains of Koko-nor, Kansu, and North-
western Sze-chuen, Western China.
Hal)its. — This Pheasant inhabits the wooded mountainous
regions, and ascends to a height of even 10,000 feet above the
sea-level. According to Prjevalsky, " it is a resident and re-
mains all the year round in certain places. Water does not
seem to be of so much necessity to this bird as it is to other
species of the present group ; at least, it keeps very often to
localities in the Ala-Shan Mountains, where not a drop of water
is to be found.
"In autumn and winter they congregate in small flocks,
probably in families, but very early in spring separate into pairs,
when the males at once commence to crow — i.e., uttering at
intervals a loud disagreeable note somewhat resembling the cry
of a Peacock. This usually occurs in the morning, but occa-
sionally also during the day. . . .
" After the breeding-season the males at once commence
moulting, and attain their fresh plumage only in October again.
Generally their feathers very soon get worn, and the birds are
in full plumage only for a short time in winter and spring.
" Like most of the Family, these birds are fond of digging
about in the ground in search of roots ; and it appears that
they chiefly feed upon plants."
Eggs.— Vary from five to seven ; smooth, pale olive-grey in
colour, without any spots, and much like those of the Common
Fowl. Measurements, 2*16 by 1 -6 -1-63 inches.
THF. EARED-PH FEASANTS. 257
V. MAR.MAX'S EARED-PHEASANT. CROSSOPTIEON HVRMANl.
Crossoptilon harma?n\ Elvves, Ibis, i88r, p. 399, pi. xiii. ;
Ogilvie-Grant, Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxii. p. 296 (1893).
Adult Male. — Like C. aut'itum, but distinguished by having a
wide and well-Jiiarked 7f.>hite ba)idhoxdiQ\\x\