THE FRANCOLINS. 



THE Francolins are brightly-coloured 

 birds, three species of which are repre- 

 sented within our limits and have a wide 

 distribution. They are easily recognised 

 by the rufous bars which are to be found 

 on both webs of the quills of the wing, 

 and by the black tail, more or less barred 

 with white. The tail is short and rounded, 

 composed of 14 feathers. The male has 

 usually one spur on each leg, sometimes 

 two. The female is not furnished with a 

 spur. The sexes differ in coloration, but 

 not very greatly. 



The species of Francolin are very nume- 

 rous, and more than forty are enumerated 

 in the " Catalogue." In that work, how- 

 ever, the Grey Partridges are united with 

 the Francolins. These two groups are, 

 no doubt, generally similar in structure, 

 but they differ so greatly in general style 

 of plumage that I prefer to keep them 

 separate. In fact, I have found it im- 

 possible to find any characters of plumage 

 common to both the Francolins and the 

 Grey Partridges of India. By keeping 

 them apart, however, the two groups are 

 easily defined. 



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