PERDICIN.E. 307 



Male, head, face, and neck variegated black and white, the 

 feathers being black with white streaks and triangular spots, 

 the head mostly black ; the upper plumage and wings rich ches- 

 nut, with spots on the back, sides of neck, shoulders and wing- 

 coverts ; primaries earthy-brown ; tail dark sepia-brown, glossed 

 with green in old birds ; beneath the throat and neck are 

 variegated black and white, changing on the breast to ochreous- 

 buff, with small triangular black marks, which disappear on the 

 abdomen ; the flanks, thigh-coverts, and under tail-coverts dull 

 chcsnut. 



The female has the top of the head dusky, with the forehead 

 over the eye, and the nape, tinged with chesnut ; a pale ruff and 

 moustachial line ; the rest of the plumage dull olive-brown, 

 changing to ochreous-olive on the breast and abdomen. 



Young males have the general plumage of female, with the 

 tertiaries and tail chesnut brown, with black bands. 



Young females have blackish lunulations on part of their 

 plumage. 



The male has from one to three spurs on each leg, generally 

 two on each, occasionally three on one and two on the other. 



The female has usually at least one spur on each leg, 

 occasionally two, very rarely none at all. 



The Painted Spur Fowl is rare in the Deccan ; indeed it has 

 only, I believe, been procured once, about 40 miles north-east 

 of Belgaum ; one was shot by General Nuttal about 35 miles 

 from Neemuch, Central India, the skin of which is now in my 

 possession, but the Red Spur Fowl is much the commonest of the 

 two species. 



FAMILY, Setraonidae. 



Bill generally short, stout, and thick ; nostrils in many plumed 

 at the base ; wings rounded in most, pointed in a few ; longer than 

 in the Phasianidce ; tail short or moderate, even or very slightly 

 rounded, forked and lengthened in a few ; tarsus rather short and 

 stout ; face feathered entirely, or with a small patch of nude 

 skin over or round the eye. Plumage of the sexes in general 

 differing but very slightly, sometimes not at all. 



SUB-FAMILY, Perdicinse. 



Tarsus not feathered ; orbits generally plumed, or wanting the 

 nude eyebrow of the grouse ; tarsus often spurred. 



GENUS, Franeolinus, Stephens. 



Bill moderate or somewhat long, stout, slightly curved at the 

 tip ; tail of 14 feathers, somewhat lengthened, even, or very 

 slightly rounded ; tarsi of the male wfth strong but blunt spurs. 



Francolinus vulgaris, Step. 



818. Jerdbn's Birds of India, Vol. II, p. 558 ; Butler, Guzerat ; 



