AND INCREASE OF CERTAIN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND. 53 
An exotic bird, of semi-sedentary habit, clumsy in body 
and heavy on the wing, it can never really thrive in this 
country without being pampered and artificially bred. It is 
a regular farm-yard bird, and as such is an excellent addition 
to our list of edible fowls, but as a wild bird it is an ornitho- 
logical failure. Bad luck to the man who brought us the 
Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) from Colchis, to exterminate 
better birds than itself, and to corrupt the morals of man, 
bird, and beast wherever it exists in any numbers. It lays 
a large number of eggs (worth a shilling each, generally) on 
the ground—a great temptation for men and boys, and, what 
is worse, it sheds these eggs broadcast through the woods— 
small wonder that crows, jays, magpies, and even rooks are 
taught to prey on them, ‘The hen is the most careless of 
mothers and does not know how to bring up her chicks, 
which, unprotected, fall an easy prey to the dashing Sparrow- 
Hawk (Accipiter nisus). The pheasant has even corrupted 
the virtuous Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus),* which (coming to 
kill the mice attracted by the food strewn profusely round 
the pheasant-coops) learns that a young pheasant is sweeter 
than a mouse. This stupid bird roosts either on the ground 
or on low shrubs, and thus invites foxes or poachers to kill 
it. It must bear a large share of the blame for the frame of 
mind of the average keeper. He knows that he will be con- 
sidered incompetent if he cannot show a great head of game 
on the first of October. Therefore he divides all wild 
creatures into two classes only, and whatever is not game, is 
vermin, and is treated as such, And so we hear of a keeper 
shooting a Tawny Owl (Syrnivm aluco) or an Osprey (Pandion 
haliaetus) under the impression that he is helping to keep up 
a good stock of game. 
As for birds which really do prey on game, they must be 
shot out entirely on every well-regulated estate where 
pheasants form the main item of winged game. And for 
this proprietors are very greatly to blame. 
Mr Howard Saunders is not wrong when he says,t 
“with the increase of pheasant-worship, the doom of the 
buzzard was sealed” in England. 
*See Newton’s Dictionary of Birds, note, p. 478, 
+ Manual of British Birds, p. 311. 
