578 



G A L L I N I D 



from that which the parties supposed, for they were 

 so much encumbered by the excess of human atten- 

 tion that their native powers were rendered much less 

 efficient than they would have been had they been 

 left altogether alone. 



This is a matter worthy of great attention, in the 

 case both of animals and of plants, because there is 

 always more danger that exotics shall, upon their first 

 introduction, be killed by over-kindness than that 

 they shall suffer from neglect. The more beautiful 

 any living or growing thing is, the more are we dis- 



Cosed to associate it with delicacy of frame ; and 

 ence we are apt to poison both plants and animals 

 by our heat and conlined air, when, if we left them 

 to shift for themselves in a state of nature, they would 

 not only live but become vigorous, and speedily adapt 

 themselves to our climate. The male bird, when in 

 full plumage, is nearly three feet in length, of which 

 the tail forms two-thirds. The female is not only 

 smaller and has a much shorter tail, but the whole of 

 her plumage is less gay and splendid. The young 

 males resemble the females, and are not invested 

 with all the richness and brilliancy of their attire till 

 they have moulted a second time. The females, on 

 the other hand, at the age of five or six years, some- 

 times put on the male plumage. From the head rise 

 some long bright yellow feathers, which hang grace- 

 fully over its hind part, the colours of which, together 

 with the sides of the neck, are orange and black. 

 The distinctive golden tinge is mixed with green on 

 the back of the neck , the feathers of the back are 

 bright yellow, bordered with crimson ; deep blue sur- 

 mounts the base of the wings, which are beautifully 

 varied with chestnut, brown, and red. The feathers 

 of the tail are chestnut and black ; and above the 

 base bright scarlet, which is the colour of all the 

 under parts except the neck, the latter being dusky 

 brown. The iris, bill, and legs are bright yellow. 

 They feed on rice, hemp-seed, wheat, or barley, and 

 they will also eat cabbages, herbs, and fruits ; but 

 they are particularly fond of insects, the difficulty of 

 procuring a sufficiency of which is supposed to be a 

 principal cause of the many disorders to which they 

 are liable. The female begins to lay her eggs early 

 in March, which very much resemble those of the 

 Guinea pintado, and are redder than those of the 

 common pheasant. The flesh of the present species 

 is considered superior to that of any of the others. 

 The painted or golden pheasant will breed with the 

 common, but the offspring is infertile in the hybrid, 

 though there is no doubt that, as is the case with all 

 mules, it might be made to breed back to the pure 

 blood of either parent. From their known hardiness 

 and their extreme beauty, it were highly desirable 

 that these birds should be multiplied in all ornamen- 

 tal grounds ; and it is still more to be desired, though 

 the means of gratifying the desire are not very appa- 

 rent, that such a feeling should be disseminated among 

 the uneducated ranks of the people, as that they 

 should respect those birds, not only as t'he property 

 of their lawful owners, which it is a crime against the 

 laws of society to invade, but that they should respect 

 the beauty of such birds as among the public orna- 

 ments of their country, the injuring of which is a 

 violation of a much higher law than any which man 

 can enact, and that the consequence of the invasion 

 of this is their own moral degradation, and certain 

 wretchedness and misery. 



THE SILVER PHEASANT (P. nyclkcmcrus}. This 



species, which is sometimes called the pencilled phea^ 

 sant, is still more hardy than the pieceding one, and 

 has been reared and domesticated with nearly as little 

 care as the common fowl. Its robust constitution 

 approximates it more to common domestic poultry 

 than the other pheasants. Its education requires 

 only very moderate attention. The form of its caudal 

 plumes, and the mode of their insertion, also present 

 great analogies with the domestic cock. The plu- 

 mage is less brilliant than that of the golden pheasant,' 

 and is about four or five inches shorter. The cheeks 

 are bright red, and the top of the head has long black 

 feathers falling backwards. The back, wings, and 

 upper part of the tail, are of silvery white pencilled 

 with black; the under parts are purplish black. It 

 has two long tail-feathers of pure white ; the bill is 

 dusky yellow, and the legs are deep red. The trachea 

 of this pheasant is straight through its entire length, 

 and grows narrow only towards the lower larynx, 

 as in the cocks. The upper part of each bronchus 

 has three demi-rings, w hich are separated by two wide 

 membranous intervals. The upper larynx and hyoid 

 cartilages are also similar to the same parts in the 

 cocks. The male bird of this species is of a warm 

 constitution. The pairing time is about the latter 

 end of April. The female attends with great assiduity 

 to her young brood, when she has sufficient liberty. 

 The incubation lasts rather more than three weeks. 

 The number of the eggs varies from ten to sixteen ; 

 and sometimes, but very rarely, to eighteen. The 

 colour of the eggs is yellowish red, often bordering 

 on black, and they have small brown points on them. 

 It has been brought into almost all trie countries of 

 Europe from the north of China, and thrives very 

 well with but little attention. 



The plumage of the silver pheasant is by no means 

 so brilliant as that of the golden pheasant ; but from 

 the delicacy of the colours and the fineness of the 

 pencilling, and also from the greater lightness of its 

 ibrm, it is doubtful whether it be not the more elegant 

 bird of the two. In length it is usually about four 

 inches shorter than the golden ; and its other dimen- 

 sions are less in the same proportion. The two, 

 however, from the striking differences of their colours 

 make a very agreeable contrast. 



THE RING-NECKED PHEASANT (P. torquatus). This 

 is likewise a native of China, and closely resembles 

 the common pheasant naturalised in our woods. M. 

 Temmuick. however, has pointed out the distinctions 

 with great nicety. There is a white collar about the 

 neck of this bird, from which it takes its name. In 

 1831 one of the Zoological Society's specimens, which 

 laid eggs the preceding year, exhibited the pheno- 

 menon, occasionally observable among birds, of the 

 female assuming the characteristic plumage of the 

 male. The upper parts of this species are blackish, 

 clouded with yellow, and streaked with white ; the 

 top of the head is yellow, clouded with green ; over 

 the eyes are two white markings ; the sides of the 

 hind head, the upper part of the neck and the throat 

 are green, with brilliant purple reflections; and, as 

 already hinted at, there is a large white collar on the 

 neck, which extends towards the sides. The breast 

 is reddish purple, clouded with violet ; the middle of 

 the under part whitish yellow, spotted with violet ; 

 and the abdomen black, with metallic reflections. 

 The wing-coverts are grey, clouded with green; and 

 the quills olive, waved with large bands of black. 

 The tail-coverts are bright green, the feet grey, and 



