256 OTIDID.E. 



is ; for the colour being that ot the corn or grass in which the 

 tirador lies hid, the Bustards are not nearly so likely to notice 

 the ambuscade. The day these verdant gentlemen choose for 

 their " funcion" of Bustards is invariably Sunday ; and sometimes 

 they succeed in killing a dozen birds in the day, usually about 

 the vicinity of Las Alcantarillas. In August, near Casas Viejas, 

 and, I am informed, also in other places, the Spaniards ride down 

 Bustards with dogs, continually flushing them till they are 

 exhausted ; but probably young birds only are thus caught. 

 They are also said to tire out the Red-legged Partridge in the 

 same way. This is very likely, as I have seen these Partridges 

 when driving in Norfolk, after being flushed two or three times, 

 allow themselves to be caught quite uninjured. 



The Great Bustard is easily noticed when on the ground where 

 the cover is not too high to hide them ; and at times their size 

 appears gigantic as they fly with a slow, measured, laborious- 

 looking flight ; but their pace is much faster than it appears to 

 be ; and when put up they often fly a distance of at least two 

 miles. They have great power of concealment ; and I remember 

 an instance of one which was unable to fly, from some injury he 

 had received in one of his wings. We saw this bird in a corn- 

 field of some forty acres, and forming line we tried to catch him ; 

 but he suddenly disappeared in the corn, which was not more 

 than two feet high, and in many places not a foot high. We 

 spent an hour in vain hunting for him with a dog ; so, after 

 beating the whole field over more than once, we sat down in 

 view of the ground to eat luncheon. In about a quarter of an 

 hour the Bustard appeared some three hundred yards off in the 

 middle of the corn ; so I went straight at him, running as hard 

 as I could. He again disappeared ; but going on I suddenly 

 spied something white running, as it were, close to the ground, 

 and rushing after it, up jumped the Bustard, running along and 

 flapping his wings ; unable to catch him (for he ran as fast as I 

 could), I was compelled to shoot him, a magnificent Barbon of 



