138 A GAMEKEEPER'S NOTE-BOOK 



We need not think of the effect of frost on partridge 

 eggs, for the birds cover their eggs when they leave 

 them, until they are well on their way to- 

 PheaTants warc ^ s na t cnm g> with wonderful care, regu- 

 larity, and thoroughness ; and here they 

 have the advantage of pheasants, which rarely cover 

 their eggs when off the nest. Another advantage of 

 the partridge is the hen's faithful mate to help 

 to shelter the brood from the weather and keep 

 them warm. One bird might be able to manage 

 this for fifteen little ones during their first week of 

 life ; but afterwards she could not possibly give 

 the vital warmth to more than half her offspring. 

 To the chicks of the pheasant hen a risky time is 

 between the shedding of the soft fluffy down of 

 infancy and the growth of feathers proof against 

 cold and wet. Where pheasants have the advantage 

 is that their hatching-time is spread over many 

 weeks ; so that whereas partridges may have their 

 hopes ruined by a week or by a few days, or even a few 

 hours of bad weather, the pheasants' hopes are never 

 blighted while summer lasts. 



It may be urged that if there are few young par- 

 tridges there must be few young pheasants, and 

 this to some extent is true. Though the breeding 

 conditions of pheasant and partridge are very differ- 

 ent, a bad season for one can hardly be a good season 

 for the other. With partridges, the great trouble 

 is that nearly all of them nest about the same time : 

 where one brood suffers from bad weather, thousands 



