22 Nesting of the Black-breasted Mexican Quail. 



In spring I. separated them, removing one pair to a 

 large and grassy aviary. The pair left in the old aviary built 

 a nest early in the year, and for some time I daily inspected 

 it, hoping to find eggs, but was disappointed. Since then they 

 have built other nests, but no eggs have been laid. These 

 nests were quite M'ell constructed, being about the size of that 

 of the blackbird. 



The other pair quickly settled down to their new quar- 

 ters, and about the middle of July I concluded the hen was 

 nesting as I Isiaw the cock bird alone so often. At the end of 

 the month the hen disappeared entirely and I took it for granted 

 that she was now incubating. All attempts at this time to find 

 the nest failed, and on my return from my holiday a further 

 search was equally 'unsuccessful, and I was reluctantly com- 

 pelled to conclude that the hen had died, either egg-bound ior 

 by some other misadventure. The first wefek in September the 

 cock also disappeared. This would be about six weeks from 

 the time the hen was last seen, and I naturally concluded that 

 he had now shared her fate, but to my surprise one morning 

 at the end of the month, after an absence of nearly three 

 weeks, there was Mr. Quail enjoying a sunbath on the top 

 of a pile of faggots. In the evening he was again missing, so 

 that there was only one thing to conclude, and that was. that 

 he was sitting somewhere uipon a clutch of eggs. The next 

 inorning hay aviary-man and self had another good search for 

 the nest, and, just as we were giving up in despair, the bird 

 got up at our feet. The nest was a very pretty one, in 'a 

 clump of grass at the foot of a willow-bush, and it contained 

 eight eggs. The eggs were white, faintly blotched with grey 

 and slightly smaller than those of the Calif omian Quail. 

 They could not be described as fresh, as on my attempting 

 to blow them for my collection they promptly exploded, and I 

 'Only succeeded in saving one. 



Of the wild life of this species but little has been 

 published, but I imagine that it differs very little from that 

 of its Arizona and Texan cousins. These are found on the arid 

 prairies, where trees do not exist, and water is very scarce. 

 They depend a great deal upon their legs to escape from their 

 enemies and are difficult to make take wing; but once Hushed 



