286 The Partridge or Quail. 



•disparity in tlie time may ho, accounted for by tlie circurastanco 

 ^•^f the Partridge sitting much closer than the domestic fowl, and*, 

 •consequently, generating a larger airiount, if not a higher degree, 

 of animal heat. 



" The femal<3 bird during the period of incubation becomes 

 quite poor, and undergoes the process of a partial moult, which 

 provide? a few downy feathers to assist in keeping the eggs warm 

 durino- her absence from the nest in quest of food. The young 

 birds are quite strong when they first burst from their narrow 

 confines ; and it is no v«ry uncommon thing for them to be seen 

 runnino" about with a portion of the shell adhering to their backs. 

 While the hen is sitting, and even after the birds are hatchedj 

 ker mate may often be seen early in the mornings, or late in the 

 afternoons, perched on a fence rail or low limb of a tree, whistling 

 with all diligence for a h^lf hour at a time, as if to cheer the 

 female in her arduous and solitary duties. Partridges are strictly 

 monoo-anious ; and it is supposed by some that the cock assists 

 t-he hen in covering the nest ; and we incline to the opinion that 

 these birds, in common with many others, do share the cares of 

 hatching the little brood. 



"If the weather remains dry and mild after hatching, the young 

 birds will be able to fly in the course of three or four weeks ; if, 

 on the ether hand, the season should be backward and inclement, 

 the tender little brood gains strength but slowly, and great num- 

 bers consequently will fall victims to the damp and cold, while 

 beino- led about in search of food. 



" As soon as the anxious mother abandons her nest, attended by 

 her nimble little progeny, she is joined by the cock Partridge, 

 who o-ives all his attention to the searching for food and protect- 

 incr the active little brood from any danger that may beset them. 

 At the first alarm, the young birds instinctively skulk in the deep 

 (Trass and remain perfectly motionless, while the old ones resort to 

 every artifice within their power to ward off" the impending 

 danger. It is interesting to observe the earnest solicitude with 

 which both the parents watch over their young, and the wonder- 

 ful instinct they exhibit in guarding them when surprised by the 

 huntsman, before they are sufficiently fledged to fly off". The old 

 birds take to the wing, and the young ones run with all speed 

 into the nearest thicket, or conceal themselves in the brushwood, 

 or long grass that abounds at this season on their feeding-grounds. 

 The hen, after flying a few hundred yards, alights, and returns 



