364 Struthionidce. 



give but a sorry account of the welcome they met with here. 

 Far different was the hospitality offered by my friend Mr. 

 Upcher, when a fine male bird made its appearance on his 

 property at Feltwell, in Norfolk, in 1876 ; for he not only took 

 the utmost pains to secure it from molestation and intrusion, 

 but procured from Lord Lilford a female companion, which he 

 turned down on the spot, in hopes he might induce it to remain 

 and perhaps breed on his property : but all his efforts were most 

 unfortunately frustrated by exceptionally severe weather and 

 most violent storms, which resulted in the death of the hen 

 bird and the departure of the male.* All honour, however, to 

 him who did his best to protect and provide for the stranger, 

 instead of attacking it the moment it appeared and hunting it 

 to death, as was done in Wiltshire and other counties whenever 

 it made its appearance. At all events, during the sixteen years 

 which have elapsed since the last memorable visit to Wiltshire 

 we have seen no more of this bird, at once the largest, the noblest, 

 and the most highly prized of all our British birds ; and for 

 which our county was so notorious, as the principal stronghold 

 of what once stood at the head of the game list. 



133. LITTLE BUSTARD (Otis tetrax). 



I have no hesitation in admitting this interesting species into 

 our Wiltshire list, on the authority of the Right Hon. E. P. 

 Bouverie, of the Manor House, Market Lavington, who is a keen 

 observer of birds, and who fell in with two of this species on 

 August 6th, 1877, and on returning home was so good as to 

 favour me with the following account of what he had seen : c I 

 was riding with some friends on Monday, August 6th, on the 

 Plain above Netheravon, and my attention was attracted by a 

 large strange bird, which rose off a fallow about 100 yards from 

 me ; a second rose immediately afterwards and flew in a different 

 direction, 150 yards on to the down adjoining, and then ran, 



See account in Zoologist for 1876, p. 4882, also a more full account, with 

 illustrations, in the Field during February, 1876. 



