70 A MONOGRAPH OF THE PHEASANTS 



above the sportsman's head, but so suddenly and rapidly as to leave little chance of his 

 getting a shot at it ; and many, as soon as aware of the sportsman's presence in the 

 wood, will, without waiting for his approach, conceal themselves so artfully as to leave 

 only a bare possibility of his ever finding them. 



" Even if the particular tree into which one has been seen to fly is immediately 

 approached, one may stand for an hour under it, and examine almost every leaf and 

 branch without being able to discover the bird, and should one even succeed in doing 

 this, one is still often disappointed in getting a shot, as they seem to keep their eye 

 fixed on your movements, and to become aware of the very moment they are discovered, 

 darting off before the gun can be put to the shoulder. 



" In spring, which is the season most generally chosen by the sportsman for 

 excursions in the interior, he will have a better chance of finding them than in autumn, 

 as then they are not so restricted in their resorts, but are distributed all over the forests, 

 and the males do not so much covet concealment. They should now be sought for in 

 the higher parts of the forest, where the birch tree begins to make its appearance, and 

 it is advisable to sit and listen at intervals for their call. On hearing it, the sportsman 

 should proceed as quickly and as noiselessly as possible to the quarter from whence the 

 sound proceeded, listening at times for a repetition of the call to guide him to the exact 

 spot. The bird will generally be found on some exposed spot where a nice pot shot 

 may be had. Great caution must be taken, particularly when getting near, as, if once 

 disturbed, there is little chance of finding the bird again that day. 



"The Jewar roosts in trees, and in winter, perhaps for warmth, seems to prefer the 

 low evergreens, with closely interwoven leaves and branches, to the larger trees which 

 overshadow them." 



On the whole I think that Wilson's account is reliable, but drawn in part from 

 native hunters. I hardly see how he could know that the same birds return year after 

 year to exactly the same locality, and while it is probable that they do, one can hardly 

 accept it as a proven fact. From talks which I had with many sportsmen and natives 

 I think that the Western Tragopan is much more of a solitary bird than Wilson gives 

 us to understand. All which I saw were alone, and as it is true that when a flushed 

 bird calls, all within hearing distance answer, I could tell with some degree of certainty 

 the proximity of the nearest bird, which was usually a considerable distance away. 

 This and some other discrepancies, however, may be partly the result of the bird's 

 distribution over a large, broken territory, so the habits of the individuals on one range 

 may well differ slightly from those of others at a distance. 



I found these Tragopans feeding on newly sprouted leaves, and from the accounts 

 of several sportsmen, I believe that such vegetable matter forms their principal diet. 



This species resembles the satyr so closely in its general habits, and is so nearly 

 related to that tragopan, that it is very probable the category of vocal utterances is 

 similar. The waa which Wilson thinks is an invitation to the females, doubtless 

 corresponds to the challenge call of the satyr, while the mating call of the Western 

 Tragopan, which is probably much lower, has not yet been recorded. 



Wilson unquestionably errs when he states that, although the most solitary and 

 shy, these birds are of all Tragopans the most easily reconciled to captivity, and that 



