296 Manual of the Game Birds of hidia. 



the ground ; grubs, insects, seeds and 

 berries, and, if near cultivated fields, 

 several kinds of grain form a portion ; it 

 does not eat grass or leaves like all the 

 rest of our Pheasants. It is easy to rear 

 in confinement, and might without diffi- 

 culty be naturalised in England, if it 

 would stand the long frosts and snows of 

 severe winters, which I imagine is rather 

 doubtful. The female makes her nest in 

 the grass or amongst low bushes, and lays 

 from nine to fourteen eggs of a dull white 

 and rather small for so large a bird. 

 They are hatched about the end of May 

 or beginning of June. Both male and 

 female keep with the young brood and 

 seem very solicitous for their safety." 



The eggs have a slight gloss and are of 

 a pale buff colour with, generally, one or 

 the other end speckled with reddish brown ; 

 but some eggs are quite plain. They 

 measure from 2*05 to 2*22 in length and 

 from 1*47 to i'56 in breadth. 



The male has the crown and crest 

 brown, the feathers tipped with grey. 

 The throat and a ring round the neck are 

 whitish. The mantle, the back and the 

 smaller wing-coverts are pale buff barred 

 with black, each feather with a narrow 

 grey tip and a bar of pale blue. The 



