THE PHEASANT 219 



great anxiety, as if wishing to draw attention from her chicks to 

 herself. Their food consists of the fresh green twigs of heath and 

 other mountain plants, seeds, and berries. While feeding they 

 run about, and are shy in taking flight even when they have acquired 

 the use of their wings, but crouch on the approach of danger, and 

 remain motionless and silent. When at length they do rise, they 

 fly off in a loose party, and mostly in a direct line, for a distant 

 part of the mountain, the movement of their wings resembling that 

 of the Grouse, but being lighter in character. Early in the season, 

 a long time before Grouse, the coveys of Ptarmigans unite and 

 form large packs, and it is while thus congregated that they per- 

 form their partial migrations from the high grounds to what they 

 consider a milder climate, the Norwegian valleys. There, while 

 the ground is covered thickly with snow, they, to a certain extent, 

 modify their habits, and perch on trees, sometimes in such numbers 

 that the branches seem to be altogether clothed in white. It does 

 not appear that any of these flocks make long journeys or cross 

 the sea. In Scotland they are no more numerous in winter than in 

 summer, nor have they been observed to take refuge in the woods. 

 In the comparatively mild temperature of Scotland there occurs no 

 lengthened period during which they cannot find their simple food 

 somewhere in the open country ; they consequently do not leave 

 the moors, but only descend lower. 



The Ptarmigan is neither so abundant nor so generally diffused 

 in Scotland as the Grouse. It is resident on high mountains. It is 

 said to have existed at one time in the north of England and in 

 Wales ; if so, it has totally disappeared, nor is it known in Ireland. 



FAMILY PHASIANIDjE 

 THE PHEASANT 



PHASIANUS COLCHICUS 



Head and neck glossy, with metallic reflections of green, blue, and purple ; 

 sides of the head bare, scarlet, minutely speckled with black; general 

 plumage spotted and banded with orange-red, purple, brown, yellow, 

 green, and black, either positive or reflected ; tail very long, of eighteen 

 feathers, the middle ones longest. Female — light brown, marked with 

 dusky ; sides of the head feathered ; tail much shorter. Length three 

 feet. Eggs olive-brown. 



This climate suits the Pheasant pretty well, and at most seasons of 

 the year it finds abundance of food ; but in hard winters the supply 

 diminishes, or fails altogether ; and were not food specially scat- 

 tered about for it in its haunts, it would either die off from being 



