PARTRIDGE. 43 



four or five to thirty, afford considerable sport to the gunner. 

 At this time the notes of the male are most frequent, clear and 

 loud. His common call consists of two notes, with sometimes 

 an introductory one, and is similar to the sound produced by 

 pronouncing the words " Bob White." This call may be easily, 

 imitated by whistling, so as to deceive the bird itself, and bring 

 it near. While uttering this he is usually perched on a rail of 

 the fence, or on a low limb of an apple-tree, where he will 

 sometimes sit, repeating at short intervals " Bob White," for 

 half an hour at a time. When a covey are assembled in a 

 thicket or corner of a field, and about to take wing, they make 

 a low twittering sound, not unlike that of young chickens; and 

 when the covey is dispersed, they are called together again 

 by a loud and frequently repeated note, peculiarly expressive 

 of tenderness and anxiety. 



The food of the Partridge consists of grain, seeds, insects, 

 and berries of various kinds. Buckwheat and Indian corn are 

 particular favourites. In September and October the buckwheat 

 fields afford them an abundant supply, as well as a secure shel- 

 ter. They usually roost at night in the middle of a field on 

 high ground; and from the circumstance of their dung being 

 often found in such places, in one round heap, it is generally 

 conjectured that they roost in a circle, with their heads out- 

 wards, each individual in this position forming a kind of guard 

 to prevent surprise. They also continue to lodge for several 

 nights in the same spot. 



The Partridge, like all the rest of the gallinaceous order, 

 flies with a loud whirring sound, occasioned by the shortness, 

 concavity, and rapid motion of its wings, and the comparative 

 weight of its body. The steadiness of its horizontal flight, how- 

 ever, renders it no difficult mark to the sportsman, particularly 

 when assisted by his sagacious pointer. The flesh of this bird 

 is peculiarly white, tender and delicate, unequalled, in these 

 qualities, by that of any other of its genus in the United States. 

 The Quail as it is called in New England, or the Partridge, 

 as in Pennsylvania, is nine inches long, and fourteen inches in 



