228



Mr. T. H. Newman,



among thick bushes, flying at the sligliest noise so as easily to be

overlooked. They doubtless roost and nest in bushes and. low

trees at no great distance from the ground.


My birds spent nearly the whole of their time on the

ground, and had a wonderful way of hiding behind bushes and

of putting objects between themselves and the observer ; later

on they became much tamer and would hardly take any notice of

an intruder. They know full well how best to make use of all

their beauty when displaying; the cock had a curious habit,

turning in the direction of the hen, he would stand quite still,

and at regular intervals of a few seconds, would slowly raise his

wings to their full extent above his back ; this would be continued,

often for a considerable time, I think it was meant to attract the

lien towards him, he only did it when he could see her. The

display proper would begin by the cock lowering his head and

arching the wings so as to cause the bars to become very con¬

spicuous ; he would then often pursue the hen, when quite

close he would suddenly stop, and, as it were reverse, that is to

say he would squat down in an upright position almost on his

tail, with head thrown back and breast fluffed out and protruded

so as to exhibit the “ heart,” the buff flank plumes, which are very

long and soft, standing well out on each side. Meanwhile he

would utter his curious rumbling coo. The sudden change from

lowered head and raised wings to the upright position was very

marked ; as is usual in such cases, the hen did not seem at all

impressed, but rather anxious to get out of the way ; they were

not very affectionate, and generally kept rather apart.


The birds came to me as a doubtful pair, though one (the

cock) was much larger and brighter coloured than the other,

which proved to be a hen. As the cock took to chasing its

companion, who could not fly, owing to an injury in the right

wing which seemed to prevent the primaries from growing, I

separated the birds in the late summer of 1907 for some time.


Early in 1908, the birds began to assert themselves more,

so that I suspected they were a pair, which was proved by my

finding, on 17th of June, an egg in a rough nest built in some

ivy only about 18 inches from the ground. The egg is large for

the size of the bird, decidedly tinted with cream-colour, and very



