184 THE BIRDS OF SHERWOOD FOREST. 
was so fully attained, that no one ignorant of the change 
which had taken place would have had the least con- 
ception of her sex. Every characteristic of the male 
was put on; the comb and wattles became prominent, 
the long arched feathers of the tail, as wellasthe droop- 
ing hackles of the scapularies, were completely developed ; 
and, to crown the metamorphosis, she had a formidable 
pair of spurs, an inch and a half long, and the scales 
down the front of the tarsi were very large. In this 
dress she lived until she was sixteen years old, when 
she died of a decay of nature. 
Of the genus Tetrao I can include two species—viz., 
Tetrix and Scoticus. Black grouse (Tf. Tetrix) occur 
in scattered pairs all over the heathy parts of the forest, 
but in two localities (Inkersal Forest and Coleorton 
Corner) are rather plentiful. They are, of course, care- 
fully preserved, and on the first-named spot as good a 
bag has been occasionally made as on some of the 
northern moors. Though fitted for imbhabiting the 
ground, the blackcock is by no means a bad percher, 
and in several instances during spring time, when I 
have disturbed them during my walks, I have seen them 
fly off, making a circuitous route, and then settle on a 
bough of one of the old oaks, where they seemed quite 
at home. I have the eggs taken from the forest. My 
claim to include the Red Grouse (T’. scotsews) in my 
list rests on a single male bird which was shot at Bever- 
cotes in November, 1860, a solitary straggler from its 
northern home. 
In the cultivated parts of the district the Partridge 
(Perdia cinerea) is most abundant, for it is closely and 
carefully preserved. It is, however, by no means con- 
fined to the arable lands, but is plentiful on the heathy 
