506 Mr. E. G. Meade-Waldo on the 



eggs or small young. In flocks they were very wild, and 

 reminded one generally of Lapwings ; they skim a great deal 

 with outstretched motionless wings. Their voice is a low 

 qua qua when they have young. 



When shot the Cream-coloured Courser ejects a lot of 

 brownish fluid out of its mouth, which soils its feathers very 

 much. I fancy this is natural and voluntary. Where they 

 most frequent this fluid may be seen in patches, and a pair of 

 young ones that I kept alive for three days ejected some of 

 it when quite undisturbed and apparently at their ease. This 

 little pair I tried to rear, and think I should have done so, 

 had it not been that they wanted almost ceaseless attention, 

 and I could not spare the time. They ate flies, small snails, 

 and cochineal-bugs, also small pieces of lizard. They ran 

 at a great rate, holding themselves very upright, with their 

 wings stretched out wide. I, greatly against my inclination, 

 converted them into skins. I think they were about five 

 days' old. 



The Houbara Bustard resembles the Courser in that the 

 hen only remains at the nest, and the cock comes afterwards 

 and helps to rear the young. Last year I thought it was the 

 exception for the cock to accompany the hen with her young 

 ones, and was much surprised to see one do so ; but I am 

 assured by several natives that they always do this. The hen 

 Bustard is, however, very tame at the nest, and runs about 

 shamming lameness. The eggs of both Courser and Bustard 

 vary greatly in size and colour ; the Courser seems never to 

 lay more than two, the Bustard three as often as two, and 

 the natives tell me they occasionally find five. The newly 

 hatched Houbara Bustard is a lovely little thing, chocolate- 

 brown colour, with patches of cream-colour. 



I was surprised to find the Kestrel of Fuerteventura quite 

 diff'erent from that of the other islands ; it is much smaller, 

 the females being equal in size to the Canarian and Tenerife 

 males. It is, moreover, exceedingly light-coloured, the female 

 of the other islands being very dark. The tail of the adult 

 Fuerteventura hen has less blue than that of the Tenerife hen, 

 and has small brownish bars instead of black. The cock is 

 very pale and pure in colour. 



