CHENALOPEX AIGYPTIACA. 747 
stalked in the long grass they will almost invariably creep away, 
instead of taking wing; and unless the hunter has a dog it is no 
easy matter for him to find them, as they run at a good pace, and 
by the time he is on the spot, expecting them to rise, he sometimes 
sees the head of one a couple of hundred yards off examining the 
situation ; if the shooter squats when the birds are flying, they will 
often come and have a look at him, and this curiosity frequently 
costs them their lives. As a rule, they are gregarious, but are 
sometimes seen singly, and at others in pairs; they breed away 
from water in thick grassy or rushy spots, and lay a number of 
white eggs with thick glossy shells.” Sir John Kirk states that 
they are called ‘‘ Tsekire”? on the Zambesi. “They vary,” he says, 
“from 10 to 14 1b. in weight. They come with the rains in flocks 
of ten or twelve, and remain to breed in the marshes. Their 
favourite food is the ‘Nyka’ or tuberous enlargement of the bud of 
the Nymphea which they swallow. They perch on trees, and seem 
occasionally to roost in them. In the daytime they often settle 
on the trees near their feeding-grounds.” Mr. Andersson writes: 
“This noble bird is not uncommon on the River Okavango and at 
Lake N’gami; it is also found on the River Teoughe; but I am 
not aware that it has been met with in either Damara or Great 
Namaqua Land. It is generally found in small flocks, and presents 
a conspicuous object when standing erect in the marshes to which it 
resorts. It is said to perch and roost occasionally on trees.” Senor 
Anchieta has sent specimens from Benguela, Huilla and Humbe. 
Upper parts black, shot with bronze and green; wings mottled 
with white; lower parts white, with patches of black behind the 
thighs; the front of the head is bare (more so in the female than 
in the male), granulated, and reddish ; this is succeeded by a white 
patch, which does not extend to the top of the head, but occupies the 
chin and part of the front of the throat ; wings armed with a strong 
powerful spur. Female: length, 3’ 6’’; wing, 21”; tail, 7’’. Male: 
length, 3’’; wing, 19”; tail, 6’’. 
On the variations met with in this species and its allies see 
Professor Barboza du Bocage’s note (Orn. Angola, p. 491). 
721. CHENALOPEX mGypriaca (L.). Egyptian Goose. 
The “ Berg-Gans” or Mountain-Goose is the commonest of our 
Geese, and is found in considerable abundance throughout the 
