1920.] Cajie San Antonio, Buenos Ayrcs. 91 



So was a tliree-years' flood, spoiliii"' tlie nests and diminish- 

 inf^ the area of the birds. Add the gunner's toll all the 

 year round (for the close-season is practically a dead letter 

 so far as local protection is concerned), and it will be 

 found that the Fates have been cruelly against this well- 

 known denizen of the Province of Buenos Ayres. To one 

 peril, however, an adjunct of civilisation, it managed to adapt 

 itself. I allude to the wire fence. At the outset, the 

 Partridge failed to take into consideration the new obstacle, 

 witii fatal results ; this was especially the case on tlie rail- 

 ways, where the sudden rattle and roar of the oncoming train 

 had an utterly demoralising eflect. But for a long time 

 past this has ceased to be the case ; and the disturbed bird, 

 feeding inside the double line which guards the railway, goes 

 up agiiiust the wind and passes just over the fence, instead 

 of blundering blindly into it. 



The nesting-period I now put back to the beginning of 

 October, and its duration to early in April. I suspect that 

 there must be two broods in the season, to judge from the 

 late nests. Similarly, I have never again met with a clutch 

 of nine eggs, or even eight ; from four to seven has been the 

 general number, the latter not uufrequent. Mr. Hudson is 

 quite right in stating that " the wine-purple coloured eggs 

 vary somewhat in hue, having a reddish tinge ; others are 

 of a deep liver-colour.'' 



The eggs average 4ix32 mm. 



433. Rhea americana Lath. Common Rhea. 



When I wrote of the Rhea in 1880, it was still truly 

 a wild bird. As 1 then stated, it had been nearly extirpated 

 in the district, at that time open and unfeuced, and where 

 the hunter of all fer(r naturw such as the Rhea and the 

 Nutria (feather and fur) took toll at his own free will. My 

 father's eft'orts to save the Rhea and our two Tinamous from 

 extinction, were, as I then anticipated, difficult to carry into 

 effect; and by 1881' it was a doubtful question if there still 

 existed a pair of the former in the Rincones. However, I was 

 then in position to inij)rove the state of things myself. The 



