210 GLAREOLIDA# 
The bird bears some resemblance to the Bustards: it is 
strongly built, and is less graceful and active in its move- 
ments than the typical wading-birds. 
Flight.—The flight is strong and swift. 
Food.—Insects and small shell-fish form the main diet. 
Voice.—The note of the female is_ syllabled rererer 
(Favier). 
Nest.—This bird lays on desert sands and on stony 
wastes. The eggs,’ two in number, are light buff, spotted 
and marbled with shades of brown and deep grey. 
Incubation probably commences in March. 
Geographical distribution.—The Cream-coloured Courser 
breeds in Northern Africa, and is abundant on some of the 
Canary Islands. Hastward it can be traced across the Red 
Sea through Arabia to North India. Its visits to Southern 
Europe are irregular, and to latitudes north of France it is 
only a straggler. 
DESCRIPTIYE CHARACTERS. 
PLUMAGE. Adult male nuptial.—Top of head, buffish- 
grey, shading to slate-colour; feathers of the back of the 
neck, margined with black; a narrow white stripe extends 
from the eye to the neck, below which is a black stripe; 
back, wings, rump, and tail, sandy-buff; primaries, axillaries, 
and under wing-coverts, blavk; breast and abdomen, pale 
oreyish-buff, shading to white ; under tail-coverts, white. 
Adult female nuptial.—Similar to the male plumage. 
Adult winter, male and female—Similar to the nuptial 
plumage. 
Immature, male and female.—More rufous than the 
adult ; no grey or black on the back of the neck; eye- 
stripe, yellowish; feathers of the throat and back, edged 
with dark crescentic markings. 
Beak. Dark brown. 
FrEr. Greyish. 
IrnipEs. Hazel. 
AYERAGE MEASUREMENTS. 
TOTAL LENGTH ... key See) In. 
WING ee oi be Le. Oto eee 
BEAK doe bs We fal * 
TARSO- METATARSUS ah Le O25 uee 
Kec = A a ww , 35 ieee 
‘ The first eggs on record were obtained by the late Canon Tristram 
(‘ Ibis,’ 1859). 
