656 PTEROCLES 



Frequents sandy, dry localities, and except during the breed- 

 ing season keeps together in flocks of from 5 to 50, running 

 about picking up seeds and insects on the dry soil. In the 

 early morning and evening these fly to the drinking places often 

 far distant, and like their congeners are very shy and wary. 

 Their call-note is a peculiar gurgling sound like Quiddle, quiddle, 

 quiddle. They nest on the ground in March or April, the 2 to 3 

 eggs being in ground-colour similar to those of P. alchata but 

 much smaller, and the brown surface spots are very faint. 



908. SINGED SAND-GROUSE. 

 PTEROCLES EXUSTUS. 



Pterocle* exmtw (Teinm.), PI. Col. Nos. 354, 360 (1825) ; Gould, B. 

 of Asia, vi. pi. 64 ; (Ogilvie Grant), Cat. B. Br. Mus. xxii. p. 12 ; 

 (Blanf.), F. Brit. Iml. Birds, iv. p. 60 ; P. ellioti, Bogd. Mel. Biol. 

 xi. p. 54 (1881). 



HJtat-titar, Kwnartit, Hindu. 



ad. (Egypt). Head, throat, and upper parts sandy buff or isabelline, 

 the face and neck tinged with yellow, and the back with brown ; scapulars 

 arid some of the median coverts tipped with reddish brown, some of the 

 larger coverts with a subterminal white spot ; quills, primary coverts, and 

 middle tail-feathers blackish brown, the rest of the tail-feathers dark 

 brown tipped with white or buify white ; breast warm buff crossed by a 

 black gorget edged with buffy white ; abdomen and flanks dark brown, 

 the middle of abdomen black'sh ; tarsi, vent, and under tail-coverts pale 

 buff ; bill and feet slaty grey ; iris dark brown ; orbital skin yellowish. 

 Culmen 0*52, wing 7'?, tail 5'3, tarsus 0'85 inch ; middle tail-feathers 

 about 2-0 longer than the lateral ones. The female is suridy buff mottled 

 and barred with black on the upper parts ; sides of head, throat, and upper 

 breast sandy buff mottled with black on the lower throat ; a narrow 

 double black band across the breast ; abdomen barred dark brown and 

 rufous, the middle darker. 



Hab. North Africa, in the west south to Senegal, in the 

 east to the Pagani River ; Palestine, Central Asia, and the chief 

 part of the Peninsula of India. 



Like its allies it frequents the open country, where it feeds on 

 seeds and insects, and visits the drinking places in the morning 

 and evening. Its call is a double clucking note, uttered when 

 on the wing, and which may be heard at a considerable distance. 

 It breeds in April in N. Africa, but in India at all seasons, the 

 nest being a small depression in the sand, usually without any 

 lining, but sometimes lined with a little dry grass ; the eggs, 3 



