Pheasants Rearing by Hand. 39 



and we know of none more suitable than a nursery plantation 

 of young trees. The site chosen for this is always well 

 sheltered, and yet well open to thfc sun, and young pheasants 

 always rear hardily and well on it. 



As soon as the young birds are half grown they must be 

 transferred to the coverts. Each hen and her brood are 

 conveyed in the coop to a ride, or any other similar suitable 

 place, and left to take their chance as far as vermin is con- 

 cerned. They are fed twice or three times a day, and free 

 egress given them from the coop at all times until none of 

 them any longer roost with their hen, upon which coop and 

 hen are brought away and the feedings gradually broken off 

 till the young take their food with the old birds in the 

 coverts. The thicker the covert adjacent to where the 

 youngsters are turned down the better, but it is almost 

 impossible to find this for all the broods, and one should 

 place the coops in as inconspicuous a position as possible 

 in the rides, &c. 



We have now, we believe, touched on all points of 

 the hand-rearing of pheasants. We have, moreover, 

 adhered to one defined system, and not drifted into the 

 unpractical groove of half describing a dozen different 

 plans. Nearly every keeper and preserver has a different 

 " dodge" for this, that, and the other detail, but if one wants 

 to rear large numbers of pheasants and for what other 

 purpose is hand-rearing necessary ? there is nothing like 

 adopting one particular plan, and w r orking it out with 

 modifications suited to one's own particular case. 



