474 THE COMMON PARTRIDGE. 



a bright red colour ; the body is a mixture of ashen grey, 

 black, and yellowish red. The forehead, a stripe which passes 

 above the eyes to the neck, and the throat, are a beautiful 

 brownish red; the top of .the neck and the breast ashen grey, 

 finely marked with black; and underneath the breast is a 

 chestnut-coloured speck, shaped like a horse shoe, which in 

 the female is altogether wanting, or is not so large and distinct. 

 The quill feathers are dark brown, with transverse rust coloured 

 stripes ; and the feathers of the tail reddish brown. 



Habitat. They inhabit the open country, and adjoining 

 woods, all over Europe. In the open country, they betake them- 

 selves by night to the bushes. As they frequently die of cold, 

 or of hunger, in a hard winter when the snow is deep, they are 

 often caught in flat countries by a net, and then confined in a 

 room, which should be either very high, or have a net stretched 

 over the roof and windows, to prevent the frightened birds from 

 injuring themselves. 



Food. In the room where they are at liberty to run about, 

 they are fed with barley and wheat. They will also eat bread, 

 the usual paste, cabbage and lettuce ; and always need some 

 green vegetable food, as, when wild, they are obliged to feed the 

 whole winter through, on the tops of grass, and young budding 

 plants. In summer, however, they eat clover, and various kinds 

 of seeds. They are fond of rolling in wet sand, of which they 

 ought to have a supply. 



Breeding. If domestic birds of this species are desired, they 

 should be reared when young, as such become exceedingly tame, 

 and are very pleasing in their habits. Before they are able to 

 eat grain, they are fed on ants' eggs, and hens' eggs cut small, 

 and mixed with lettuce, till they become gradually accustomed 

 to harder food. They are easy to rear, as a brood often numbers 

 twenty-one, which run about with the old ones, as soon as they 

 are out of the shell, and fall in the way of mowers, shepherds, 

 huntsmen, &c. It would not be difficult completely to transform 

 partridges into domestic fowl, by putting the eggs under hens in 

 some enclosed place, cutting the wings of the young birds, keep- 

 ing them in summer in a walled garden, and supplying them well 

 with food. If the attempt did not entirely succeed the first 

 season, they would by this half training gradually become accus- 

 tomed to their food, and the sight of man, and at last breed ic 

 the poultry yard. 



