Till-: r.\i;Ti:ii><;i-:. 479 



hiimmini: birds and looks a.s if one of thOM (Uttering little twines had been suddenly ma^ni- 

 ti.-d to a thousand times its s ia- Tin- plumage of the lmpe\an Pheasant lias the ap|*nujoe 

 of having Iteen cut out of lliin Makes of nacre m mother ..I \-.\.\ I. th.-ir shining ]M.lMi,-,| sin 

 fa.-.-, their deep chain:iiii; hu.-s of a/.ui-i'. m.-lalli.- -n-en. amethx Mine purple, and li.-iy-Onge, 

 U-iiiiT just lik.- the elT.-ct produced by tin- lin.-st n:ic-r.- \\hen rightly cut. 



Although possessed >f such Hashim: hues, which ;nv most I \ tin- ..tT-piin^ of a tropical MIII, 

 the Ini|wyaii Pheasmt inhabits the cold, sji.my unions of tin- Himalayas. This woinliMii-.lv 

 inainiificent l>inl l>n>eds without difficulty, ud endures severe frosts with iinpiuiity. As far 

 a-, is known, it remain^ entirely in tin- higher regions of its nati\.- laii.l. and never descends to 

 th.- plains. The food of this t.ird consists mostly of bulbous roots, which it dij^s out of the 

 ground with its peculiarly . m vl and sharp beak. Even in captivity tin- ImjH-yan IMi<-usant 

 will oft. ii indulge in many quaint ami grotesque actions, especially towards the puirii 

 \\ h.-ii all hinls lik- to show th.'ins.'lvas off t the best advantage. 



Ttu coloring of this gorgeous bird maybe bri.-lly .l.-scribwl as follows: The head and 

 throat are of a m.-tallic golden-green, ami th.- feathers of the crest are bare shafted for the 

 greater part of th.-ir length, and spread at their tips into flattened spatula-shaped ends. The 

 lower part of the neck and top of the liack an- rich shining purple with green and red reflec- 

 tion-., and the feathers are all lancet-shaped. Across the lower part of the back there is a 

 broad band of pure snowy-white, and the fciil is reddish -brown, barred irregularly with a 

 darker hue. The n->t of the plumage is deep steely blue. The legs are spurred, and the gen- 

 eral form is strong and robust The female is a very sober-pi umaged bird, without the lofty 

 crest or gorgeous colors of her mate. Her feathers are mostly dull brown, mottled with gray 

 and ochry-yellow, and there is a broad white patch under the chin and throat. She is also 

 smaller than her mate. 



PARTRIDGES. 



OF the many members of the Perdicine group, we shall take only five examples, the first 

 of which is the well-known PARTRIDGE. 



This bird, so dear to sportsmen, is found spread over the greater part of Europe and North 

 America, always being found most plentifully near cultivated ground. It feeds upon various 

 substances, such as grain and seeds in the autumn, and green leaves and insects in the spring 

 and early summer. In all probability this bird, although it may do some damage to the corn- 

 fields, may still be very useful to the farmer by its unceasing war upon the smaller " vermin," 

 that devastate the fields and injure the crops. Small sings are a favorite diet with the Par- 

 tridge, which has a special faculty for discovering them in the recesses where they hide them- 

 selves during the day, and can even hunt successfully after the eggs of these destructive 

 creatures. Caterpillars are also eaten by this bird, and the terrible black grub of the turnip is 

 consumed in great numbers by the Partridges. Even the white cabbage butterfly, whose 

 numeroti- offspring are so hurtful in the kitchen garden, falls a victim to the quick-eyed Par- 

 tridge, which leaps into the air and seizes it in its beak as the white- winged pest comes flutter- 

 ing unsuspectingly over the bird's head. 



The I'artiMire IM-CMIS to lay about the end of April, gathering together a bundle of dried 

 grasses into some shallow depression in the ground, and depositing therein a clutch of eggs, 

 generally from twelve to twenty in number. Sometimes a still greater number have been 

 found. l>nt in these cases it is tolerably evident from many observations that several birds ha\.- 

 laid in the -aine nest Now and then a number of pheasants' eggs are found in the nest of a 

 Partridge, and rice t>erd, the pheasant seeming, however, to be the usurper in most instances. 

 The Part rid IP- is singularly can-less of the jtosition of her ne>t. placing it in th<> most exposed 

 situations, and >itting upon the egps with |MTf.-.-i contentment, although within a van! or two 

 of a footpath. Ind>i-d. I have found the nest of this bird, with six or seven eggs, so close to a 

 frequented pathway running through a little copse, that a can-less step to one side might have 

 broken the eggs. In color the eggs an- not unlike those of the pheasant, being of a smooth 

 olive-brown. 



