174 



NATURAL HISTORY. 



Courser (Cursorius isabellinus), a species which has occasionally wandered to England. Jerclon says 

 that the Indian species (C. coromandelicus) is very abundant in the Deccan and Western India. It 

 associates in small flocks, frequenting the barest plains and ploughed lands, and is very abundant on 

 the parade ground at Jalna. It runs about rapidly, nodding its head occasionally when it stops, and 

 picks up various insects, chiefly Coleoptera and the larvse of certain grasshoppers. Burgess states 

 correctly that it has the peculiar habit of running for a distance at spaed, suddenly stopping, erecting 

 the body, and then starting up again. It breeds on a hollow in the ground, from March to May, 

 laying generally three eggs of a pale greenish-yellow colour, much blotched and spotted with black, and 

 with a few dusky olive spots. It is rather a silent bird.* 



The True Bustards are much larger birds than the Thick-knees, or Coursers, and have no 

 basal web to the toes, the claws being stout, obtuse, anl very short. The males are larger than the 

 females. The Great Bustard (Otis tarda) used to be found on the fen lands and plains in England, 

 but has been banished by the increase of drainage and the extension of civilisation. In many parts of 

 Europe, however, it is still plentiful. The following short sketch of this bird has been condensed from 

 Dr. Brehm's account of the species : 



It is found in Germany, and also frequents the south and east of Europe. Africa, with its 

 flat deserts, gives it shelter, as well as Central Asia. The handsome, muscular form, and its many 

 characteristics, combine to make it a most interesting bird, and, perhaps, also the difficulties 

 experienced in its capture make a knowledge of its economy still more desirable. On occasions when 

 it extends its finely-developed tail, and distends its neck, with its prominent moustache, it has a most 

 dignified appearance. The female is much smaller than the male, though specimens vary according to 

 age ; a full-grown male will measure 3ft. Gin. from the tip of the beak to the end of the tail, and 8ft. 

 from wing to wing. The pouch attached to the throat of the male is filled with air, allows the neck to 

 be distended, and is also asserted to be a medium of strength to his voice, when he puts special 

 pleading in his wooing. The plumage is varied ; yellowish on the upper parts, varied with wavy lines 

 of black, the under parts pale clay colour, the head and part of the breast ash-grey, the tips of the tail- 

 feathers and some of the wings white, and the pinion feathers black. The Bustard, to secure a resting- 

 place far from the haunts and attacks of men, displays immense intelligence ; its caution and sagacity 

 are most extraordinary, and it is amusing to notice how it will take advantage, for future benefit, 

 of past experiences and escapes, and a lesson is never allowed to pass unheeded. Large, flat, 

 open plains are its favourite haunts, and in selecting such spots it shows its wisdom, as there the 

 approach of the hunter is easily detected, and even in Africa, where they sometimes live among 

 high grass, they contrive to elude the enemy. One would suppose that when the bird is asleep it 

 might be surprised ; not so, however, for two old wary sentinels keep guard, and are always on the 

 alert. The nesting-places are also fixed in very remote spots. They have a powerful agent 

 in their splendid sight, and they are so clever that if they see anybody approach, who does not 

 seem to have any particular business, no matter how much disguised, they take fright, and off they 

 go. They may even have inhabited a chosen spot for some time, and yet, if they fancy that 

 there is a little change in the familiar look of the place, they shift their quarters at once. Their 

 sense of smell and hearing is less acute, and thus they may be captured by some skilful tactics, 

 as, for instance, a covered pit, where the hunter is invisible, or a hut constructed during the 

 last seed-time, into which the hunter introduces himself, and bags his prize as the Bustard walks 

 comfortably past. The movements of this species are very quick, and it walks immense distances. 

 Some assert that it experiences difficulty in preparing for flight, but this is not the case, for it 

 flies very rapidly in the air, and gets its impetus by a short run. One can easily imagine that 

 great finesse is required in their capture, firearms alone being of any use. We must now notice 

 the food, habits, and maternal instincts of this bird. The food consists of various insects, all 

 kinds of plants, seeds, fruits, &c. Green food is a favourite diet in summer, and to some extent 

 in winter; but at this season it makes the rape-fields the scene of its operations, grazing in 

 them at intervals during the day, and flying off at evening time to roost quite two miles away. 

 It resembles the Goose in the manner of its grazing, and also in the way it cleans its feathers 

 with dust. It also improves digestion by means of small stones, <tc., which it swallows in great 



* " Birds of India," Vol. II., p. 627. 



