FRANCOLINUS SUBTORQUATUS. 



latter barred with rufous ; the inner surface of the shoulders and wings rusty 

 ash-grey. The under part of the neck, the breast, and the belly, rusty white 

 and freely variegated with slightly curved, umber- brown bars. (In specimens of 

 a certain age the sides, or even the whole of the breast, is rufous, with the bars 

 narrower and less distinct); — the thighs, the under tail coverts, and the vent 

 pale rufous, the latter only finely barred with brown. The upper mandible 

 tow^ards the angle of the mouth, and the whole of the lower towards its base, 

 greenish j'ellow ; the remainder of both mandibles and the claws blackish 

 brown; the tarsi, the toes, and the spurs dull yellow. Eyes reddish brown. 



Form. — Figure slender; the head small and the neck rather long for the 

 size of the bird ; bill moderately strong, slightly curved, broad at the base 

 and rather narrow at the point ; feathers of front narrow and rigid ; the 

 wings, when folded, extend nearly over the first half of the tail; the lirst 

 quill feather is very small, the tifth and sixth are nearly of equal length and 

 longest, the fourth and seventh ec[ual and rather shorter than the last two ; the 

 third and eighth of the same length, but not quite equal to the fourth, and 

 only a very little longer than the second : some of the tertiaries equal in 

 length to the longest primaries. Tail full and slightly rounded ; tarsi mode- 

 rately robust and coated behind with two rows of large flat scales ; the toes 

 are short, the hinder one very slender ; each tarsus armed with a single spur, 

 which is very short, blunt at the extremity, laterally compressed, and 

 situated about two lines above the hinder toe. 



DIMENSIONS. 



Inches. Lines 



Length of tliy tarsus 1 



of tlie middle toe 9 



of the outer toe 6'^ 



of the inner toe 4A 



Inches. Lines. 

 Lengtli from the tip of the bill to the 



extremity of the tail 10 



of the bill from the angle of 



the month 10 



of the wings when folded 5 3 



of the tail 2 6 



The female is without spurs to the tarsi ; in other respects she exhibits a 

 close resemblance to the male. 



The few specimens of this species which we obtained were killed near to the tropic of 

 Capricorn, and were found upon the bases and slopes of low stony hills, which were thickly 

 covered with fine brushwood. Among the brushwood, and between the large stones with 

 which the surface of the hills was strewed, these partridges principally sought their food ; 

 and though they occasionally resorted to the plains, they generally manifested a disposition 

 to retreat to the hills, whenever they were molested on the latter. Having once reached 

 the localities, which it appeared they considered the best constituted to ensure them safety, 

 they could not, without much exertion, be driven from them ; and from their holding their 

 ground with such pertinacity and manifesting such a determination to avoid flight, we lost 

 several individuals which otherwise would probably have been secured. 



