246 Manual of the Game Birds of hidia. 



separated by a distance which he refers 

 to as a four days' march. 



" Mountaineer," as quoted by Dr. 

 Jerdon, gives an interesting account of the 

 habits of this species. He says : — " Its 

 usual haunts are high up, not far from the 

 snows, in dense and gloomy forests, 

 either alone or in small scattered parties. 

 In winter they descend the hills, and then 

 their favourite haunts are in the thickest 

 parts of the forest of Oak, Chestnut, and 

 Morenda Pine, where the Box-tree is 

 abundant, and where under the forest 

 trees a luxuriant growth of ' Ringall ' or 

 the hill Bamboo forms an underwood in 

 some places almost impenetrable. They 

 keep in companies of from two or three 

 to ten or a dozen or more, not in compact 

 flocks, but scattered widely over a con- 

 siderable space of forest, so that many at 

 times get quite separated, and are found 

 alone. If undisturbed, however, they 

 generally remain pretty close together, 

 and appear to return year after year to 

 the same spot, even though the ground 

 be covered with snow, for they find their 

 living then on the trees. If driven away 

 from the forest by an unusually severe 

 storm, or any other cause, they may be 

 found at this season in small clumps of 



