202 NATURAL HISTORY OF BIRDS. 



western and central Asia, Madeira, the Canary Islands, and A9ores. The genus Cac- 

 cabis contains about six species, with an unmottled plumage, with bright-colored 

 bands on the flanks, and a general ashy and buff coloring, admirably adapted to con- 

 ceal the birds in the rocky grounds they frequent. As a rule they are not very good 

 eating, being dry and not very tender, although the young, when kept for a time and 

 properly cooked, are said to be very good. They are extremely pugnacious, and it is 

 stated that in former ages they were kept tame for fighting, as game-cocks were, and 

 that the Emperor Alexander Severus was very fond of this sport. They are hardy 

 birds, braving extremes of heat and cold, and in Persia are found in the Elburz moun- 

 tains, at 10,000 feet elevation. They do not lie well to the dog, but run swiftly, and 

 take flight when out of range of the gun, and consequently are not favorites with sports- 

 men. In fact, as game-birds, they have little to recommend them beside their hand- 

 some appearance. The nest is merely a hole scratched in the ground, and the number 

 of eggs varies from nine to as many as twenty-four. The red-legs are noisy birds, 

 calling mostly in the morning and evening ; and when a covey is scattered, each indi- 

 vidual, says Hume, proclaims his own and inquires his fellows' whereabouts. The 

 tone varies. First he says, " I 'm here," then he asks " Who 's dead ? " and when he 

 is informed of the decease of some favorite relative, or perhaps his eldest son, he re- 

 sponds, " Oh lor ! oh lor ! " in quite a mournful tone. The various species feed on 

 grain, seeds, insects, caterpillars, etc., and also on tender shoots. 



The splendid birds known by the trivial name of snow-cocks or snow-pheasants, 

 are dwellers, as their name implies, of high elevations on the gigantic mountains of the 

 Himmalehs, and of the Altai, also in the Caucasus range. They are met with in Asia 

 Minor, Armenia, Kurdistan, and Persia, while one species, the S. thibetanus, is found 

 not only in Thibet proper, but also in the mountains of western China. They range 

 at from 6 to 18,000 feet in elevation, descending to the lower heights in winter after 

 heavy snow. They are large birds and extremely shy, go in packs occasionally of 

 twenty to thirty individuals, though five to ten is the more usual number. In summer 

 generally but a pair are found together. When feeding, a sentinel is always posted 

 on some commanding spot to give notice of any danger, and as they resort to the 

 rocks and never enter forest or long grass, it is exceedingly difficult to approach them 

 or take them unawares. They breed early in the spring, and the young are very skil- 

 ful in hiding among the stones. The number of eggs laid is from six to nine, of pale 

 olive color, with light or dark red spots. The nests are hollows scraped in the earth, 

 and lined with grass and a few feathers or green fir-needles. The sexes differ slightly 

 in plumage, mainly about the head and breast. In size they vary from a length of 

 nineteen to twenty-nine inches, and in weight from three to six and a half pounds. 

 The genus Lerwa contains only one species, the L. nivicola, known as the snow- 

 partridge, which ranges for a thousand miles along the Himmalehs, and into Thibet 

 and western China. In winter it descends to an elevation of 7,000 feet, its summer 

 abodes being at from 10,000 to 14,000. In habits and haunts this bird much resembles 

 the snow-cocks, but it prefers a mossy vegetation to that of a grassy character. It is 

 generally very tame and will permit one to approach quite near, when it utters a 

 harsh whistle, but it is exceedingly difficult to distinguish the bird from its surround- 

 ings if it remains motionless. It breeds near the snow-line, and the eggs are stated to 

 be large, dull white and freckled all over with reddish brown. It is a handsome bird, 

 the whole plumage being minutely barred with black or buffy white, and tinged with 

 chestnut on the side of the neck. The chin is grayish, throat, breast, and upper part 



