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58 
of all previous examinations of the crop and gizzard of these birds ; 
in no case have any remains of insects been detected. I have the 
contents of the crop and gizzard here,.and you can examine them 
for yourselves; The state of its plumage shows that this bird has 
not yet completed its autumn moult. If the moult had been 
completed, both birds would have been handsomer than they are, 
as they would have had the peculiar long feathers in the wings and 
in the tail which are so characteristic of the species. The bird 
which has the long tail feathers has been preserved by Messrs. 
Williams and Son, of Dame-street, Dublin. Like the other, it is 
not in very good plumage, as it is, apparently, in the middle of its 
moult, In order that you may see what these birds are like when 
in perfect plumage, I have here the volume of Gould's British Birds, 
which contains a plate of this species, and which has been kindly 
brought this evening by Mr. Crowley. This drawing, like most of 
Mr. Gould’s, is very beautiful; but the colours in it are, I think, more 
light and more bright than you will find in any living specimen. In 
this species, the brighter portions of the plumage soon fade after 
death, and Mr. Gould’s colours will therefore differ still more from 
those ina stuffed specimen. I think this is about all that is to 
be told about these particular specimens, but Mr. W. N. 
Coates, who shot one of the birds, is here, and, no doubt, 
will be happy to give you any further information as to 
them which he possesses. I propose now to give you a short 
account of the species, as its history is most remarkable and highly 
interesting. Pallas Sand Grouse takes its name from Pallas, the 
well-known naturalist, who was the first person to make the bird 
known in Europe. It is a member of the great order Rasores, or 
scraping birds, an order which comprises, besides the Sand Grouse, 
all the pigeons, pheasants, partridges, and grouse proper, and all 
our domestic fowls, and the birds nearly allied to them. In this 
order the Sand Grouse form a highly specialised and distinct group, 
and, accordingly, they are classed in a distinct family ( Pteroclide ). 
One very striking feature about them is their very peculiar colouring, 
which is remarkably well adapted to conceal! them in a sandy desert. 
They are found all over Africa and Madagascar, and the greater 
part of Asia—wherever they can meet with the large sandy tracts 
which they frequent. Some few stragglers may find their way into 
southern Europe, but only two species—Pt. alchata and Pt. arenarius 
—are known to breed there. Although commonly called grouse, 
they are not really grouse at all, but, as we shall presently see, are 
much more closely allied to the pigeons, and strongly resemble 
pigeons in many of their habits and ways. The family Pterochde 
consists of but two genera: Pterocles, from which the family takes 
its name, and Syrrhaptes. The last-named genus contains but two 
species: Pallas Sand Grouse (the more immediate subject of this 
paper) and a large species, about double the size of Pallas bird, 
