Practical Game Preserving. 



the sun rises, and start to feed. Their food is multifarious, 

 varying according to the season. During spring and early 

 summer, blades of grass, &c. ; all sorts of seeds, chiefly of 

 the various kinds of plants, coming under the denomination 

 of weeds. In addition to this form of food, the bird subsists 

 to a very great extent on all sorts of insects in their many 

 forms of existence, preferring, however, ants, wireworms, 

 spiders, slugs, and members of the aphis family, of which 

 the well-known cuckoo-spit is at once the most common 

 and most mischievous. The young birds until fully matured 

 devour nothing but insect food. In late summer and autumn 

 a very small portion of corn is also eaten by the partridge, 

 but we believe it never pulls an ear of corn down which 

 is not within its reach, so that during the time our cereal 

 crops are ripening, the partridge, although a constant fre- 

 quenter of the fields, does no damage to the grain. Its 

 express aim in being there is to feed upon the thousands 

 of insects always present and upon the seeds of the many 

 weeds now ripening; but, of course, if there be any ears 

 of grain within reach it soon empties them of their fruit. 

 It is after the corn is cut, however, that the partridge con- 

 sumes most grain, for it lies, some in the fallen ears and 

 some on the ground, the food for any bird that likes to 

 consume it, and we are sure the farmer could not grudge 

 the ever beneficial little brown birds the share they 

 earn so well. 



As soon as feeding is completed the birds repair to some 

 particular place to pass the day. In winter this is generally 

 some grass field or low brake where they find good shelter 

 and warmth, but it often occurs that food is so scarce or 



