352 REPTILES AND BIRDS. 
resembles the former bird in every respect except the position of the 
markings on its plumage. 
The Pluvian may be considered as belonging to the Plovers, as 
the difference between them is insignificant. We wish to mention it 
on account of its curious habits, to which we previously called atten- 
tion when speaking of Reptiles. This Bird is a native of Egypt and 
Senegal, and is on the most friendly terms with the Crocodiles, a 
circumstance deserving to force itself on the meditations of philoso- 
phers. The Pluvian does the Crocodile the service of picking his 
teeth, ‘This assistance rendered by the little bird to the terrible reptile 
of the Nile is, to say the least, interesting, and has somewhat the 
appearance of having inspired La Fontaine with his fable of the 
“Tion and the Mouse.” 
The Bustards (Ovs) are allied to the Gad/inacee by their short 
back, their thickset shape, and the general character of their habits ; 
but their elongated tarsi, and their legs partly bare, give them a 
position among the Gral/z. They have short front toes, and no 
back ones ; they run with extreme rapidity, assisted by their wings. 
Their flight is heavy and awkward. They frequent dry and open 
plains, and make their nests on the ground. Their food consists 
of worms, insects, grasses, and even seeds; and they move about in 
large flocks. The male birds being less numerous than the females, 
they are generally polygamous. These birds are shy and timid, and 
their flesh constitutes an excellent article of food. 
There are three species of the Bustard—the Great Bustard, the 
Little Bustard, and the Houbara Bustard. 
The Great Bustard (Ovs farda) is the largest ofall European birds; 
its weight sometimes attains to thirty-six pounds. It is yellow on 
the back, with black streaks, and in front it is a greyish white. The 
head of the male is ornamented on both sides with curled feathers, 
which Jook something like moustaches, and have obtained for it the 
name of the Bearded Bustard. It flies with great difficulty, and is 
reluctant to take wing except in cases of absolute necessity. Its eggs, 
two or three in number, are laid in the corn or grass; the nest is | 
nothing more than a hole scratched out in the earth, and with scarcely 
any lining. 
The Great Bustard was formerly very common in Champagne, 
which is now the only province in France in which this bird is to be 
met, in fact it is now so scarce that we might almost say that it has 
completely disappeared from French soil. Innumerable troops of 
them are to be seen in the steppes of Tartary and Southern Russia. 
The Little Bustard (Osis tetrax, Fig. 143) is about the size of the — 
