CHAPTER II 



NATURAL HISTORY 



Distribution and life-history of the partridge Red-legged 

 partridges Foreign varieties suitable for introduction 

 Cookery of the partridge. 



THE common partridge, known indiffer- 

 ently to scientists as Perdix Perdix or 

 Perdix cinerea, and more familiarly to 

 sportsmen as * the little brown bird/ is a 

 member of a large family, no fewer than 

 152 species of partridges and their affinities 

 being recognized by ornithologists. 



Besides our own indigenous bird, but 

 one other species is resident in the British 

 Isles, the red-legged partridge (Caccabis 

 rufa), which hails from the extreme 

 south-west parts of Europe, and was first 

 introduced into England in the reign of 

 Charles II. 



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