23S CASSELL'S BOOK OF BIRDS. 



All the various members of this group were originally natives of Asia, where some species 

 frequent mountain ranges, and never descend from a certain altitude even during the most severe 

 winters, whilst others prefer low-lying districts ; they, however, avoid the actual forest, and seek for 

 the shelter of brushwood, shrubs, or hedges, and from thence fiy out to search for food in the 

 surrounding country. These birds are stationary in their habits, and at most indulge in short 

 expeditions not exceeding the distance of a few miles from their native haunts. 



The MACARTNEY PHEASANTS {Euphcamus) constitute a group possessing a slender body, 

 short neck, small head, short wing, and moderate-sized tail, composed of sixteen feathers. The bill is 

 moderate, the tarsus high, and in the male armed with a spur. The feathers on the neck and rump 

 are not much prolonged, and the former are more or less ragged at their tips ; those of the tail are 

 placed in gradations, the centre ones curving both downwards and outwards. The head is decorated 

 \yith a delicate crest ; the cheeks are bare, and covered with a soft velvety skin, which swells to such 

 a size during the period of incubation as to form a comb and short lappets. The plumage of these 

 birds is more remarkable for its brilliant lustre than for the variety of its hues. The female and 

 young differ considerably from the adult male in their appearance. 



THE SIAMESE FIREBACK. 



The Siamese Fireback i^Euplocamus-Diardigallus-prczlaUis) is a fine species, with the throat and 

 up»pef part of the breast and back of a beautiful dark grey ; the crown of the head and a narrow 

 band around the bare red cheek are black ; the feathers On the centre of the back are bright yellow ; 

 those on the rump black,- with a broad scarlet edge. The wing-feathers are grey, bordered and 

 tnarked with a darker shade ; those of the tail are lustrous blackish green, and those on the breast 

 deep black, with a green gloss ; the crest is composed of from twelve to twenty feathers, having lancet- 

 shaped tips and bare shafts towards their roots. 



This bird is a native of Siam, where it is known as the " Kai-pha." Sir Robert Schomburghk saw 

 a living specimen in a collection of animals at a Siamese temple, and purchased it. When in captivity, 

 instead of seeds, it had been fed upon the fry of fishes, prawns, and shrimps ; this specimen, when 

 dead, was forwarded to Mr. Gould. Sir Robert Schomburghk was afterwards told by the Prime 

 Minister, or Kalakome, that this pheasant is found at Rapri, or Raxaburi according to Sir J. Bowring's 

 map, in latitude 31° 33' north; longitude say 100° east. 



Mr. Gould, previously to the receipt of this specimen, had seen a drawing of the bird in the East 

 India Company's collection. 



Schomburghk describes some of these birds kept by himself as being readily tamed ; their flight 

 resembled that of a Partridge, and their cry, when alarmed, was loud and harsh. Their food consisted 

 of insects, rice in the husk, small bits of plants, bananas, and various other kinds of fruit ; the latter 

 diet they evidently preferred. 



THE SIKKIM KALEEGE, OR BLACK PHEASANt. 

 The SiKKiM Kaleege, Black Pheasant, or Kirrik {Euplocamics-Gallophasis-melanotus), as it is 

 called in India, has the entire mantle of a glossy black, a part of the throat and the breast are 

 whitish, the belly and feathers on the tail-covers dull brownish black. The eye is brown, the beak 

 greyish yellow, the bare cheek bright red, and the foot grey. The length of this bird is twenty-three 

 and the breadth twenty-eight inches ; the vn'ng measures eight inches and three-quarters, and the tail 

 ten inches. The female is somewhat smaller, and is principally of an umber-brown, each feather 

 having a light tip and lines on the shaft ; these markings are broader and lighter on the under side 



