THE GAME BIRDS OF ESDI A. 17 



" of the hill about 50 yards below me. By this means 

 '• birds from the slopes would always run up and were 

 " then flushed together with those which were originally on 

 " the top. 



" I cannot agree with some descriptions of this bird Avhich 

 " say that it is difficult to flush, and even when flushed at 

 " once makes straight for the thickest cover. My experience is 

 " that males when first put up usually fly along the crest of 

 " the hills, and after being flushed a couple of times or so, 

 "breakback; broods and pairs flew straight down-hill, and 

 '• at once started running up again. On such occasions they 

 " generally just went over the crest and squatted a few yards 

 " down the opposite slope. 



" When flushed the males get up Avith a curious bubbling, 

 " scolding, chuckling noise and at night I heard this same 

 " cry on the rocky hills. 



" Females with broods, whether young chicks or nearly 

 " fullgrown, in the first instance usually led them away by 

 " running, uttering at the same time a peculiar scolding 

 " chuckle. Even under these circumstances they were always 

 " so eager to climb to the tops of rocks and look back that 

 " one could often get right up to them. 



" Their food seemed to consist of seeds, berries, grain and 

 "other vegetable matter. In the crops of all I examined 

 " there was a soft dark brown mash with occasionally a few 

 " small seeds distinguishable in it, and I also found a lot of 

 " stale dry mowrah flowers in their crops after the middle of 

 " May. 



" The legs of the males ] examined had from two to three 

 " spurs, in one case three on both legs, the females had from 

 " one to two, often two on each leg." 

 Jerdon does not think much of it as an article for the table, he 

 writes : — 



" Its qualities for the table are inferior to those of the last 

 " species, having less flavoxn- and being more dry. Kumbers 

 " are snared in the hills not far from Madras, and are geaierally 

 " procurable in the Madras market. I have kept them in 

 " confinement for long. They thrive pretty well, but the 

 " males are very pugnacious. The males have a fine cackling 

 " sort of call, very fowl-like." 

 It should be noted that C apt. Baldwin states that this Spur- 

 Fowl when running carries " the tail up, not like a partridge. " 

 This must surely be wrong, but I have never seen it contradicted, 

 and unfortunately skins will not either refute or confirm this, and 

 some sportsman should remember to take observations which will 

 enable him to do one or the other. 

 3 



