SNOW-PARTRIDGE 241 



belly, and brilliant red legs and bill, are striking when close at 

 hand. Yet in their own haunts the birds are hard to see on the 

 ground, in spite of there not being enough cover to hide a 

 sparrow ; for the snow partridge is true to its name, and if 

 possible, will be on ground where the only vegetation is moss 

 and the shortest of grass, interspersed with bare stone and snow 

 patches. 



On the scanty vegetation of these heights the birds contrive 

 not only to live, but to get and keep fat ; their usual weight is 

 over a pound, and may reach nearly a pound and a half. In 

 winter they are perforce driven to the lower hills, but always 

 keep to their preference for barren spots, and manage to keep in 

 touch with the snow, not descending below 7,000 feet. 



Although not scarce birds and in some localities common 

 enough for a hundred to be seen in a day's march, they are 

 decidedly not generally distributed, and occur in localities often 

 separated by a day's journey. Where rare, they are wild, but 

 tamer where they are abundant, but in any case much shooting 

 will naturally have the effect of making them less approachable ; 

 in favourable circumstances, they rank as some of the best 

 sporting birds, and only the superior attractions of four-footed 

 game cause them to be neglected. Although best known as a 

 Himalayan species, this bird extends outside our boundaries as 

 far as Western China; its western limit is Kashmir. 



The call of these partridges is a loud harsh whistle, which they 

 give out when approached, and they keep whistling when on the 

 wing. They go in flocks or coveys except during the breeding- 

 season, and even then sometimes several old birds may be found 

 along with a number of young, as in the case of the snow-cock, 

 which these birds resemble so closely in appearance and note when 

 on the wing that unless it is possible to make out the great 

 difference in size they are difficult to tell apart ; but the snow- 

 cock is found on rather different ground, and is wilder and takes 

 longer flights. 



They breed, as they live by preference, as near the snow-line 



as possible, on rather rough ground, on the ridges jutting out from 



the snow. The eggs are laid under a rock, apparently about the 



end of May, since chicks, according to Wilson, were first to be 



16 



