910 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. Vol. XV I II. 



India ; and the Bengal florican (Sypheotia bengalensis), which replaces the last 

 named in Northern India. 



In this article it is proposed to deal with the lesser florican, the smallest of 

 the four, which is about the size of an ordinary barndoor fowl. It is of a 

 lighter build, and has a longer neck, and legs in proportion to its size. The 

 male and female have the same colouring, viz., brownish or yellowish, with dark 

 brown or black bars on each feather ; but the male assumes a nuptial dress, 

 when he is easily distinguishable from the female. At this season his whole 

 head, neck, and breast become a glossy black, a patch of white feathers appears 

 on his wings, and five or six long feathers, terminating in " eyes," forming ear 

 tufts, develop. He is then a most comely and beautiful bird. The female is 

 perceptibly larger than the male. 



I have shot florican in Rajputana, but Kathiawar is the district in which I 

 have had best sport. It occurs in Central India, the Dekhan, and other parts of 

 Bombay, but I have not had any shooting of this description in those parts 

 The florican arouses one's curiosity, as it is a mysterious bird. During the 

 monsoon — that is, from the latter end of June to August or September — 

 it is numerous, not to say abundant, in Kathiawar, where numbers fall to the 

 gun. At other times of the year it is rarely, if ever, seen. I have spent some 

 twenty-four odd years in India, and have always been interested in ornithology, 

 but I have discovered little about this bird ; nor have I met any sportsman who 

 has ever made a bag of them, except during the monsoon. An odd bird or two 

 may be met with occasionally ; that is all. Their coming and going is equally 

 mysterious. Not a bird is to be seen ; the south-west monsoon sets in. In a 

 few days your shikari comes in and reports, " Khurmor [florican] dekha, sahib" 

 (I have seen florican, sir.) Sure enough, there they are, but whence have they 

 come, and whither do they go ? 



Grass lands, known as " bhirs" or " kurans," interspersed with low bushes 

 jowari and millet fields, and such like, form the haunts of florican. During 

 the hot weather these are arid plains, but very little rain brings up the grass, 

 and with the grass comes the florican. However, every bhir will not hold birds. 

 To the ordinary eye two bhirs may look exactly alike. One will attract flori- 

 can, the other will not. In all probability it is a question of suitable food 

 being obtainable. To be sure of getting birds one must engage a shikari who 

 knows their favourite haunts, else it is of no use, for one may wander for miles 

 over likely looking ground and not flush a bird. Another thing to know is that 

 a certain bit of ground will only accommodate a limited number of birds. You 

 may leave it for ten days or a month, but there will only be about the same 

 number of birds as you have already taken off it. Instinct seems to warn them 

 that a bit of ground can only maintain a certain number, so any others coming 

 along must pass on. 



Florican only being about during the breeding season necessitates their 

 being shot at that time. This does not seem to diminish their numbers : nor do 

 I think much harm would be done if hens were always spared. Fortunately 



