on the Duration of the Period of Incubation. 163


Of the smaller Quails Coturnix coiomandelica went to nest

with Dr. Russ, but failed to hatch : in May, 1903, Mr. Reslie

Setli-Smith bred it, but was unable to note the period of

incubation; this was fortunately remedied by Mr. George C.

Swailes (Avic. Mag. N. S. Vol. I. p. 480) who gave eighteen days as

the period. Respecting the Chinese Painted Quail ( Excalfactoria

chinensis) there seems some uncertainty, Russ giving sixteen to

eighteen days as the period, Mr. Meade-Waldo nineteen days,

Mr. Seth-Smith nineteen to twenty; later (Avic. Mag. N. S. Vol.

I. p. 321) he says twenty-one to twenty-two, but I think that

reckoning must include the morning in which the young hatched

—perhaps very early, which surely should not be taken into

account.* 1 Perdicjila cambaiensis, according to Russ, hatches in

twenty-one days, and he says no doubt P. argoondah does the

same, but his young hatched when he was away from home. Of

the species of Callipepla Major Bendire says that C. californica,

popularly known as the Californian Quail, probably takes

twenty-one days, though it has been credited with a longer

period, and C. gambeli twenty-one to twenty-four ; Oreortyx

pictus twenty-one days.


Of the Hemipodes T. nigricollis has been bred by Rieut.

Hauth and others in Germany, and all agree that incubation lasts

thirteen days in the case of this species. Rieut. Hauth also bred

T. lepurana , the young hatching on the thirteenth day, which

gives twelve days of incubation ; T. tanki bred by Mr. D. Seth-

Smith also incubated twelve days (Avic. Mag. N. S. Vol. I. p.

321). It is a great pity that we cannot obtain these interesting

birds at a reasonable price, as they can in Germany. Dr. Russ

speaks of 15-20 Marks for a pair of Black-necked Hemipodes as

a tolerably high price ! f


Some of the Tinamous being pleasing little birds for the

aviary, it may be well to note that Mr. Seth-Smith gives twenty-

one days as the period of incubation for Crypturus tataupa

(Avic. Mag. N. S. II. pp. 287-8); it is however interesting to

note that the hatching of the eggs in the third nest, in mid-



* On the other hand Mr. Seth-Smith’s careful observations have shown on two occasions,

that the period of incubation may be modified by the temperature,

t Some which I had charge of for a few weeks many years ago were priced at double


that amount.



