GAM BEL S PARTRIDGE. 65 



mating season commences quite early in the spring, say 

 the month of April, and the male presents a very hand- 

 some appearance as with erect body, dignified move- 

 ments, puffed-out feathers and trailing, trembling wings, 

 he moves sedately before the gaze of his shy lady-love. 

 She is a modestly attired little body, similar, but still quite 

 different in dress to her lord, lacking the strongly con- 

 trasting colors upon the head, and the great black patch 

 on the belly. The glossy, jet black, graceful plume of 

 many feathers that decorates the head of the male, open- 

 ing and closing, as his frequent changes of feelings exert 

 their influence, is in the female reduced to small propor- 

 tions, and dusky in hue. 



The nest is simply a hollow scratched out in the soil, 

 sometimes lined with grass or leaves, and concealed 

 from view by tall grass, or by some overhanging bush, 

 or else hidden away amid the vegetation that springs up 

 in the dry beds of the creeks. In fact any spot that will 

 afford the necessary protection and concealment is taken 

 advantage of, and the eggs removed from the view of 

 prying enemies. Doubtless, however, many are taken by 

 reptiles such as snakes of various kinds, and even the Gila 

 Monster has been known to have made a meal on the 

 eggs of this species. The usual number found in a nest is 

 from twelve to fifteen; and these have a ground color 

 varying from a creamy white to a pale buff, irregularly 

 spotted and blotched with dark seal, sometimes almost 

 blackish, brown, drab, or rufous, all suffused with a 

 peculiar purplish bloom. Occasionally a nest is found 

 placed in a tree, or cactus, a few feet from the ground, 

 the bird, doubtless, having lost the eggs previously laid, 

 had sought a more secure refuge from her terrestrial foes. 

 The period of incubation extends to about four weeks, 

 and probably two broods are raised in a season. The 



