36 GAME BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA. 
different from those of the common Bob White. Occa- 
sionally very much larger numbers are found in one nest, 
but this is probably the production of more than one 
hen. Eggs have been found in May, and again as late 
as September, which would show that the entire summer 
has been passed in hatching and tending the young. 
Being so prolific, the wonder is not so much that the 
birds are plentiful but rather that they are not more 
numerous. This Quail, when flushed, rises with the usual 
loud, whirring sound and flies in a straight line, and will 
lie close and well to the dog. When undisturbed, like 
the northern Bob White, it takes flight quite noiselessly, 
without any of the whirring made when suddenly 
startled. 
The Texan Bob White has many enemies, but proba- 
bly none so formidable as the rattlesnake, numbers of 
which are found in the country it inhabits. Whether 
the serpent crawls slyly up to the bevy when feeding or 
resting, or lies in ambush and strikes the luckless birds 
when passing, I know not, having never caught one 
in the act of making a meal of Quail, but whatever the 
method be, it is a fact that these reptiles kill many; five 
having been found at one time inside of a dead rattler. 
Other enemies among the wild creatures also make them 
their prey, and so their number is kept from becoming 
too great. 
COLINUS VIRGINIANUS TEXANUS. 
Geographical Distribution.—Distributed throughout western 
and southern Texas. In Mexico from Guadalajara in the west, to 
Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon in the south. 
Adult Male.—With the general style of markings seen in the 
Northern ‘‘ Bob White ” this bird is lighter in coloration, and has 
a tinge of olive-gray prevailing over the upper surface, which is 
