144 PHEASANTS FOB COVERTS AND AVIABIES. 



were certain cures. At last I was told that common paraffin 

 would speedily effect a cure. At that time I had a young bird 

 (six months old) a perfect cripple — knots on his joints like 

 nuts. I at once applied the paraffin, pouring it well over the 

 legs; in a week there was a great improvement, and after two 

 or three apph cations the bird became perfectly well. Since 

 that time I have cured many. I generally apply it once in a 

 week or ten days. I lind the Versicolors and Reeves are the 

 most liable to the disease, and do not remember having ever 

 seen a case of it on the Gold.'" 



Disease of the ovary, attended by the assumption of male 

 plumage by the female pheasant, is a phenomenon that has 

 long attracted the attention of naturalists. It was described 

 by John Hunter in his "Animal Economy," and in the 

 " Philosophical Transactions," vol. Ixx., p. 527, and also by 

 the late Mr. Yarrell. Although gamekeepers frequently 

 speak of the hens thus changed in attire under the title of 

 mule birds, it is now perfectly well known that the assump- 

 tion of male plumage is invariably caused by disease of the 

 ovary, and the birds exhibiting this change are, without 

 any exception, always barren and useless females, not, how- 

 ever, necessarily old birds, as the change of plumage may 

 result from ovarian disease in a hen that has not laid. The 

 change takes place to a varying extent, usually beginning 

 with a slight alteration of the neck feathers. Jn some cases 

 it is absolutely entire; the hen being clothed in perfect 

 mascviline plumage, not a single feather of the body remaining 

 unchanged. This singular modification is not confined to 

 the common pheasant, but extends doubtless to the whole 

 group. It is recorded as occurring in the Silver Pheasant 

 {Eit'ploc.amus nycthemerus) in the Field of Nov. 13, 1869, and, 

 thanks to the kindness of Mr. Leno, I had in my possession 

 a Golden Pheasant hen [Thaumalea picta) in which the meta- 

 morphosis was complete. Mr. Leno had had this bird in 

 his possession for some years, and had noticed the alteration 

 increasing at each annual moult. A corresponding alteration 



