on Spanish Orniihology . 69 



Eagles frequented the Boca de la Foz, apparently contem- 

 plating a nest there. In this chasm we killed a boar av eighing 

 185 lb., and observed several wild cats and ichneumons. On 

 the 31st a large arrival of Bee-eaters [Merops apiaster) took 

 place. 



About the end of March is a favourable season for Bustard- 

 shooting. These birds abound in the great rolling corn- 

 lands, where the wheat is at that time sufficiently grown to 

 cover the hidden guns, but not these great birds when feeding 

 — i. e. nearly girth-deep. Bustards feed morning and evening; 

 from 10 A.M. till about 3 p.m. they lie down in the corn for a 

 siesta during the heat of the day. It is then mere chance- 

 work finding them ; and to make sure of a shot it is there- 

 fore necessary to send men the night before, who mark the 

 positions of the '^ bandadas,^' which are then driven according 

 to wind and local conditions. The Bustards are in com- 

 panies of from five to fifty, males and females together, and 

 feed principally on the green blades of wheat, but are also 

 very fond of the profusion of seeds which are ripening in 

 those wildernesses of weeds Avhicli the Spanish farmer calls 

 " manchon " or fallow. Habitually occupying much more 

 land than he is able to cultivate, the Spanish farmer is 

 thereby driven to adopt what he calls a "three-years' system,''' 

 only raising a crop every third yeai- ; this leaves the re- 

 maining land to exhaust itself by a prodigious crop of weeds 

 during two years. Thus two thirds of the productive power 

 is wasted, and the " mano negra " and agrarian discontent 

 flourish in lieu of corn, oil, and wine. The Bustard at least 

 benefit by the " system,^' and the brilliancy and variety of 

 the wild flowers are a wonderful sight. 



The flight of the Bustards is strikingly powerful ; they are not 

 very " hard " birds, but have a keen eye for concealed danger 

 in their course ; and, as a rule, if one sees them coming they 

 also have seen you, and at once sheer off". My friend Mr. W. 

 J. Buck, of Jerez, who is a master of the art, has killed as 

 many as fifty or sixty in a season. I do not think they are 

 migratory, but shift their ground according to the season. I 

 once saw seven of them in May in the heart of the Sierra de 



