328 USEFUL BIRDS. 



When the broods are scattered by the gunner, they are 

 reassembled again by a whistled call of the old bird, which 

 has been given, ^ka-loi-kee, Jca-loi-kee^ and is answered by 

 the whistled, repeated response, "whoil kee." The syllables 

 are almost run together. The first call is uttered with a 

 rising and the other with a falling inflection. It is plainly 

 the rallying call and answering cry. When the scattered 

 covey gets together, musical twitterings are often heard. 

 At night they repair to some favorite locality, where they 

 sleep on the ground in a ring, heads out and shoulder to 

 shoulder. In this formation there are always some birds to 

 face and discover danger, upon whichever side it approaches. 

 One spring into the air gives each bird wing room, and off 

 they fly in all directions, an animated "feathered bombshell," 

 exploding in the darkness with a roar of pinions sufficient to 

 startle and possibly baffle an enemy, as the belated traveller 

 who has happened to disturb them at night will attest. They 

 sometimes gather into the same formation in the daytime. 



In Massachusetts the birds usually roost in thickets, black- 

 berry tangles, or woods, and often use the same roosting 

 place for several nights in succession. They feed largely in 

 fields, gardens, and cultivated land ; but when pursued they 

 often take to the swamps or woods, where they perch in trees, 

 usually on the side farthest from the pursuer, sitting upright 

 on the branches or crouching close to the trunk. Their 

 habits during the shooting season are well known. A great 

 deal of ink has been used in discussing the question whether 

 the Quail is able to "hold its scent," as it is a well-known 

 fact that dogs are frequently at fault in trailing this bird. 

 When the dog is alone, the bird, even in open ground, 

 apparently gives itself little uneasiness, but simply settles 

 quietly down where it stands until it lies flat on its breast, 

 with head drawn down so close to the shoulders that it 

 might well pass for a brown clod. It remains thus, allows 

 the dog to pass within a few yards or even a few feet, and 

 keeps quiet until all danger is past. But let a human being 

 appear, and much greater precautions are taken. I have 

 seen a bird in open ground run and hide in a slight hol- 

 low, or conceal itself by crouching between two sections of 



