44 SKETCHES OK EUROPEAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



ther south than Scandinavia, where it is very scarce. Distributed 

 throughout the U. S. where, says Audubon, his cry may be heard 

 in the evening, resounding from every part of the forest. " Mr. 

 Audubon further remarks, that its powers of vision during the day 

 seem to be very equivocal, he having seen one alight on the back of 

 a cow, which it left so suddenly, on the animal moving, as to leave 

 no doubt on his mind that the Owl had mistaken the object upon 

 which it had perched for something else." Feeds on young Hares 

 and Rabbits, Mice, small birds, Frogs, Lizards, &c. — Lays, in the 

 holes of decayed trees, or the deserted nests of Crows and Hawks, 

 from four to six pure white i-ounded eggs. The male is somewhat 

 smaller than the female, and the intensity of the tints varies consi- 

 derably. 



Hazel Gelinotte, Bonasia Europcea, — Tetras gelinotte, Fr. — 

 Francolino di monte, It. — Schwartzkehlige Waldhuhn, G. Lovely 

 figures of a male and female, natural size. " The half-plumed tarsi, 

 the crested head, and the tuft of feathers on each side of the neck, 

 are features peculiar to the genus Bonasia ; in the present species, 

 this latter character is but slightly indicated, but is exhibited to a 

 greater extent in a species from America. B. Europcea is the only 

 species yet discovered in the old world, but it has its representative 

 in the new, in the well-known B. umbellus, &c. Although the Ha- 

 zel Gelinotte does not equal the Ptarmigan in flight, its powers in 

 this respect are far from being inconsiderable. They frequently 

 perch on trees, and love to dwell in wooded plains skirting hilly 

 and mountainous districts ; they feed on alpine fruits and berries, to 

 which are added the tops of Heath, Fir, Juniper, and other tender 

 shoots. They fly off in packs or companies, and are not so shy or 

 distrustful as most other members of this family ; when disturbed 

 they perch on trees, and are then easily approached and shot. — The 

 Hazel Gelinotte is dispersed over the continent of Europe from 

 north to south, inhabiting nearly all the elevated ridges and natural 

 boundaries of the different countries. Dr. Latham states that they 

 are so abundant on a small island in the Gulf of Genoa, that the 

 name of Gelinotte Island has been given to it. It also inhabits 

 France, Germany, Sweden, Norway, and Russia, thus extending 

 from the sultry regions of Italy to the limits of the arctic circle." 

 Is never met with in Britain, and appears to be exclusively confined 

 to the European continent. The eggs are from ten to twelve, rusty 

 red, spotted with a darker colour, and are laid on the ground, at the 

 foot of a Fern or Hazel-stem. The female, besides being less bril- 

 liant in tints than the other sex, wants the red naked skin behind 



