638 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXI K 



Nidifi.cation. — Misselbrook records of the breeding of these birds 

 that — 



"The hens lay from 12 to 16 eggs each at a sitting, the 

 "time of incubation being about 28 or 30 days. 



" I have not seen the males take any part in the incubation. 



" The great peculiarity in the young of these birds being 



"their extreme tameness ; there is not the least shjaiess about 



"them, they being more like the domesticated chicken. The 



' ' egg (see plate) is of a uniform pale stone colour and measures 



"about 2-3" X 1-7"." 



There are three eggs in the British Museum collection, all being 



eggs laid in captivity. The texture of these is very fine and close 



with a decided though faint gloss and a smooth surface like that of 



a duck's egg, but in one of the three there are the same fine pittings 



already noted in eggs of other birds of the genus. The colour 



ranges from a very pale olive grey to a pale dirty buff. 



Two eggs in my own collection, given me by Mr. H. Munt and 

 Mdiich were laid in the London Zoological Gardens, agree well with 

 the above, but are even more duck-like in texture, colour and shape. 

 The five eggs vary in length between 2-05" (52"1 mm.) and 2*25" 

 (57-1 mm.) and in breadth between 1-51" (38-4 mm.) and 1-57" 

 (39-9 mm.) Like the eggs of all the Eared Pheasants they are 

 very small in proportion to the size of the birds which laid them. 



Habits. — Pere David (" Oiseaux de la Chine ") writes of this bird 5 

 "The Brown Crossoptilon, known in Pekin as Hoky, is resident on 

 some of the wooded parts on the mountains of Pechely, but for some 

 j^ears past it has become very rare, and owing to the war of extermi- 

 nation which is being waged against it and the destruction of its 

 wooded haunts, it cannot be long before it disappears altogether. 

 It is a very gentle and sociable bird, always to be seen in flocks, 

 and it feeds on all sorts of grain, shoots, leaves, roots and insects. 

 It appears to be well fitted for domestication, especially as it is so 

 easy to feed, but a shady park in the vicinity of some stream of 

 clear water would be necessary for it ; that is to sa}^ conditions 

 similar to those which surround it in its wild state." 



Again the same Naturalist remarks (Nouv. Arch, de Mus. Bull.): 

 " A thing which struck me once when I killed two males and one 

 female, all adults, in July, I found four old birds and fifteen young 

 ones all together in one flock. Were these two companies ? " 

 (? families) " which had joined forces. These birds perch volun- 

 tarily and hold their tails disposed in roof shape (i.e., compressed) 

 and raised high as in an ordinary fowl." 



(To he continued.) 



