456 Mr. Blyth^s Remarks upon some Mammalia and Birds. 



(February) the hens occur occasionally in little bevies by themselves ; 

 and during a whole day's search we do not find more than a solitary 

 cock bird, and then by himself. But these separations of the sexes 

 are not proofs of monogamy or polygamy. The eggs are generally 

 six to ten in number." Early in January I came upon a party of 

 eighteen or twenty (driven together at least out of the jungle by the 

 beaters) ; and the sexes in this instance were about equal in number. 

 Mr. Skipwith writes me word, that he has made inquiries on this 

 subject of several shikdrrees, and was told that when the opportunity 

 offers the cock is decidedly polygamous ; " and I suspect," he adds, 

 " this must be the case, from a fact that has repeatedly come under 

 my own observation when shooting, that in every covey of birds there 

 are two or three hens to every cock." Capt. Hutton states however 

 that in the breeding season he has constantly found them paired ; but 

 this seems to have been in places where the species was not very nu- 

 merous, the few pairs being widely scattered. 



The following remarks on Jungle-fowl shooting may be here 

 quoted from the 'Bengal Sporting Magazine ' (for May 1837) : — 

 '* The Bhund Moorg, or Jungle-cock, is pretty generally known to 

 Indian sportsmen. It is found in almost every part of the country 

 where there is jungle. Being however exceedingly shy, and fre- 

 quenting the thickest cover, an elephant is necessary for this sport, 

 though an occasional bird may be shot on foot. They sometimes 

 rise in pairs, affording an easy right and lefter, though likely to flurry 

 a young sportsman on first coming across them. I have always 

 found that, on beating for jungle-fowl, the best place is to take up a 

 j)Osition eighty or one hundred yards ahead of my coolies, and allow 

 them to beat the birds towards me. They take a good charge of 

 shot to kill them dead, and when they are only wounded will run a 

 considerable distance. In this case, there is little chance of bagging 

 the bird. On the Calcutta and Benares roads they are very plen- 

 tiful, particularly at Oondah, Bancoorah, Chatua, Chundunkearee, 

 Chass, and Goomeah — the last-named place especially. 



" As the day breaks (on the line of march) you hear them crowing 

 on all sides ; c^t this early hour venturing to the skirts of the jungle 

 to feed in the grain and rice Khets, but appearing always on the 

 qui vive, and on your approach they immediately disappear. When 

 accompanied with chickens, the sportsman (J^ has the best chance 

 of success, as they seldom forsake their young, and the chuck, chuck 

 of the old hen directs to the spot where they are. The weight of a 

 jungle-cock is about 3;^ lbs." 



Such is the wild common fowl. The habits of one of the two Cingha- 

 lese species are thus noticed by Major Forbes : — " These Jungle-fowl 

 are continually announcing their i}Osition by a shrill double call, 

 which is somewhat like the cry of the partridge, but has no resem- 

 blance to the crowing of a ' domestic ' cock*. This call, when com- 



* The crow of G. Sonneratii is exceedingly different from that of G.fer- 

 rugineus, either wild or in any domestic variety, — a sort of charrdh-cha- 

 r'alcha. 



