8 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXV L 



"After concealing themselves they lie very close, and are 

 " flushed within a few yards. There is, perhaps, no bird of 

 ' its size M'hich is- so difficult to find after the flock have 



• been disturbed and thej- have concealed themselves ; where 

 ' the grass is very long, even if marked down, without a good 

 ' dog it is often impossible to flush them, and even with the 

 ' assistance of the best dogs not one-half will be found a 

 ' second time. A person may walk within a yard of one, and 

 ' it will not move. I have knocked them over with a stick, 

 ' and even taken them with the hand. In autumn the long 

 ' grass, so prevalent about many of the places they resort to, 

 ' enables them to hide almost anywhere ; but this is burnt by 

 ' the villagers at the end of winter, and they then seek refuge 



• in low jungle and brushwood, and with a dog are not so 

 ' difficult to find. 



" Both males and females often crow at daybreak and dusk, 

 ' and in cloudy weather sometimes during the day. The 

 ' crow is loud and singular, and, when there is nothing to 

 ' interrupt, the sound may be heard for at least a mile. It is 



• something like the words chir-a-jiir, chir-a-^nr, chir cliir, cJiirwa, 

 ' cJiirwa, but a good deal varied ; it is often begun before com- 

 ' plete daylight, and in spring, when the birds are numerous, 

 ' it invariably ushers in the day : in this respect it may rival 

 ' the domestic cock. When pairing and scattered about, 



• the crow is often kept up for nearl}^ half an hour, first 

 ' from one quarter, than another ; and now and then all 

 ' seem to join in a chorus. At other times it seldom lasts 

 ' more than five or ten minutes. 



" The Cheer Pheasant feeds chiefly on roots, for which it 

 ' digs holes in the ground, grubs, insects, seeds and berries, 

 ' and, if near cultivated fields, several kinds of grain form a 

 ' portion of its diet ; it does not eat grass or leaves like the 

 ' rest of our Pheasants. 



"It is easy to rear in confinement, and might, without 

 ■' difficulty, be naturalized in England, if it would stand the 

 " long frosts and snows of severe winters, which I imagine is 

 "rather doubtful. 



" This bird flies rather heavily, and seldom very far. Like 

 " most others, it generally utters a few loud screeches on 

 " getting up, and spreads out the beautifully barred feathers 

 " of its long tail, both when flying and running. It does not 

 " perch much on trees, but will occasionally fly up into one 

 " close by, when put up by dogs. It roosts on the ground 

 "generally, and when congregated together, the whole flock 

 " huddle up in one spot. At times, however, they will roost 

 "in trees and bushes," 



