on the Crested Wood Partridge. 203


“Captain Wardlaw Ramsay tells me he found it plentiful

“ round Mount Ophir; and I saw several skins in Malaccan

“collections. These birds thrive well in confinement, but are

“ not easily tamed ; some which were in my aviary for several

“ months, were always wild, hiding directly any one appeared in

“sight; but early in the morning, when all was quiet, and they

“ thought they were not observed, they used to come out of their

“ hiding places and feed on rice and Indian corn.”


There are two native names given, probably being different

in various districts. One is “ Serookan,” and Mr. C. Hose writing

on the Avifauna of Mt. Dulit and the Baram districts, gives the

name as ‘ Sengayan.’ Whatever the native names may be, they

certainly cannot go further than the Latin title Rollulus roulroul /

What next?


My male bird seems strong and healthy, but bears out

Lieut. Kelham’s description with regard to the shyness of the

species. I let him loose in my bird-room at one time, where

he scuttled about behind jugs and seed jars, etc., but in spite of

the flight feathers being clipped off, always went up to roost,

managing to fly on to a table and thence on to the top of a

cage.


When roosting on a bough, the short tail is tucked under

the rump, so that it almost touches the under tail-coverts.


The crest is immovable, and is composed of fine hair-like

feathers, forming a compact coronet, not like that of a Crowned

Pigeon, but as I have said, more resembling that of a Crowned

Crane. The whole form of the body is very round.


I have only heard my bird utter a soft note sounding like

‘whit.’ He eats seeds, but is very fond of banana and insec¬

tivorous food.


It is to be hoped that another mate may be found for him,

though whether such shy birds would nest in captivity, is rather

doubtful.


I am uncertain if I am correct in giving this bird a nail on

the short hind toes: they seem to be rudimentary.



