300 The Spoffed Partridge. 



tlieir back.s to Ire stroked. Both these birds are exactly 

 alike in plumage, luit one i.s slightly larger than the other. 

 The larger one had broke:i it < l;'g on hoard the ship; it liad, 

 however, been set so ;;kiliLilly thaU when the splints and 

 wrapping.- were I'emoved, a slight thickness at the place 

 r-: fracture wa , the only remaining evidence of injivi-y. 



A rougli dex-ription ol the plumage is as follows : — 

 Crc.^1, dark l)rown; sides of face, paler brown; car r-o verts, 

 dark brown, a broad che ;tnut stripe runs from the cai's down 

 the sides of the neck; wings, brown heavily mo'tled with 

 black and darker shadt^s of brown; mauile l>rown with buf- 

 fish -white shaft srreaks to the feathers; i)ack i^-rev, linely 

 mottled witli In-own and shading to Ijrown on the upper tail 

 coverts; (drin, throat, and lower part of cheeks, l>lack with 

 white centres to the feathers; under-surface, brown with nu- 

 merou.- huffish- white spots which become larger towards tliC 

 abde:i!rn; beak, black; feet, dark grey. 



Mr. Grant deicriljes the hind portion of the crnst of 

 the male as brick-red, and the feathers of the mantle with 

 no buffish -white shaft -streaks, so that I am afraid that both 

 my birds are females. 



I turned them into the largest division of my aviary 

 (46 feet by 16 feet) this year (in April). They appeared 

 to be afraid of their new surroundings, especially of the long 

 grass, and for some days were very wild and would probably 

 have injured them elves, if I had not taken the precaution of 

 '"dipping the 'flights of one w'ing liefore they were released. 



However, they eventually settled down on a small 

 portion of ungrassed ground a few feet in extent, and nothing 

 would induce them to leave it, except to perch in the trees 

 at night not even the almost irresistable temptainn of meal- 

 ft^orms, and I had to place all their food and water there. 

 They soon became tame enough to be fed from the hand again, 

 but several weeks elapsed before they would cautiously ven- 

 ture to explore other poi'tions of the aviary; now that Ihe 

 grass has died down, owing to the dry sunitiici', Ihcy waiuler 

 a1)oui': more freely, but still very cai'efully. They !ia\(' not 

 made the slightest attempt to go to nest this sunmier, but they 

 arc on quite afl'ectiona^e ternrs, and caress and j.iccn each 

 other's i)lumagc. 'fills heaves me a small liojic thai they may 

 yet prove to be a true pair. 



