Itrb N^uis 



Devoted to the Interests of the Bird Fancier 



yolmne I. 



MAY-JUNE, 1909 



tJ{umber 3 



Raising Wild Fowl on a Southern 

 California Ranch 



Part II. 



H. L. SEFTON, San Diego. 



Very like the Bob White in color- 

 ing, except that its shades seen faded, 

 the Chinese quail is a smaller, plum- 

 per bird. Its meat is dark like that 

 of a dove and it has somewhat the 

 same flavor. The eggs are about the 

 same size and are heavily specked 

 in dark brown. It is a very timid, 

 bird, lies close to the ground when 

 frightened and as it is so nearly the 

 color of the ground we have lost 

 quite a number by stepping upon 

 them. I never saw one run, they 

 have a way of sneaking off quiet and 

 stealthily. I don't think much of 

 them, for though they may be dif- 

 ferent in their native haunts, but 

 here they seem remarkably stupid. 



I presume I should have told of 

 the pheasants first as they are the 

 most important of the birds, but 

 personally I don't care much for 

 pheasants, prefering the duck or the 

 gentle, gamey quail. A pheasant is 

 a good deal like a peacock, or a tur- 

 key, very pretty to look at, but as 

 a general thing, are not an intelli- 

 gent bird, and very hard to raise to 

 maturity. When the mating season 

 comes, we select our birds from out 

 of the "Happy Family," and make 

 up our harems giving each cock from 

 two to five hens, excepting the sil- 

 vers. It is never safe to put more 

 than a single pair of that variety 

 together as the hens are very pugna- 



cious and there would surely be a 

 killing. But the Lady Amhersts, the 

 golden, the English ring-neck, the 

 versi-color, the Reeve, the Bohemian, 

 the Elliot, or our magnificent hybrid 

 can all take care of two or three 

 hens. We always have a little screen 

 of some sort, a pile of brush, or a 

 leaning board in each pen to give 

 the hens a chance to hide, as the 

 cocks are pretty severe during the 

 courting. We find a board about 

 three feet long, so placed that it 

 is open at both ends, is the best, as 

 the brush breaks the plumage. Each 

 evening we gather the eggs and at 

 the proper time put them under the 

 little buff cochin bantam hens, of 

 which we have a large number. We 

 have a regular system of book keep- 

 ing, as all the eggs do not require 

 the same length of time for incuba- 

 tion. We usually set two or three 

 hens at a time and give the hatch 

 to one. Our nests are of fine dried 

 grass or straw. We use small boxes 

 set on the ground, closed, except 

 the front which is all open save for 

 a six inch strip across the bottom. 

 We have no trouble with mites as 

 we sprinkle the eggs generously with 

 an insect powder several times dur- 

 ing the incubation. When the little 

 ones come, we remove them from 

 the nest to a box where they stay 

 with their mother for several days. 

 They are then turned out in the first 

 section of the pheansantry proper, 

 where there is an abundance of green 

 growing stuff, running water and lit- 

 tle pens of slats sitting around un- 

 der the bushes in which are little 



