14 A MONOGRAPH OF THE PHEASANTS 



vegetation is refused, whether roots, acorns, seeds, berries, leaves, buds, flowers or 

 moss. It seems to eat less grain than the other pheasants, and is never found in the 

 grain plots of the natives. Indeed it shuns human habitations of all kinds, and, unlike 

 the kaleege, soon becomes scarce wherever mankind makes a permanent settlement. 

 In Garhwal I found that it was not an uncommon habit for Koklass to go out on the 

 open rocky slopes in pairs and scratch deep holes in the turf. This was in impeyan 

 country, and in one case an impeyan scratching ground was located within a quarter- 

 mile of the isolated grubbings of a pair of Koklass. 



I think that this pheasant invariably roosts in trees. I have found them well up 

 in dense conifers, and they return night after night to their favourite perch. In the 

 spring at least they roost in pairs, or the male alone when the female has begun to sit. 

 He crows usually before descending to the ground. Out of five birds which crowed 

 regularly within hearing of one of my camps, I found that at least four gave utterance 

 from their roosting-perch. This was easy to prove by creeping very carefully up 

 behind the tree in which, from the sign, I already knew the roost to be located, and 

 ultimately flushing the crowing bird. These birds began as early as 5 a.m. and 

 isolated crows sometimes were given up to 7 o'clock. But by 6 a.m. most of the 

 croaaking was usually over. 



Several times I have seen laughing thrushes closely associated with Koklass, once 

 with a pair and again with four birds apparently of one family. When going down to 

 drink in the afternoon the pheasants move slowly but quite steadily, feeding here and 

 there in their path, but seldom turning far to one side except to pursue a flying moth 

 or other insect. The thrushes work downhill close to the pheasants and share the 

 disturbed insects. Now and then they mount a bush and look about, getting a wider 

 horizon than the terrestrial pheasants. The efficacy of this association was more than 

 once apparent, when the smaller birds discovered me and shouted their discovery at the 

 top of their lungs, flying ofl" along the hillside. Whether by accident or intention, 

 the pheasants both times ran swiftly off in the same direction as the flight of their small 

 companions, although they themselves had no knowledge of my hiding-place except 

 through the alarm of the laughing thrushes. 



The Koklass suffers from the same enemies as the impeyan and kaleege. My only 

 definite evidence was of a lot of scattered Koklass feathers, surrounded by the fresh 

 tracks of an Indian marten, a killing which had taken place the night before. 



The Nepal hawk-eagle and the leopard-cat are probably the most dreaded of the 

 animate dangers by which these pheasants are surrounded. 



HOME LIFE 



Although the Koklass may be found from three or four thousand feet up to thirteen 

 thousand, the breeding zone is much more restricted. The birds at the lower elevation 

 are those which wander downward in mid-winter, while those which are seen at the 

 upper limits of forest are only strays, perhaps unmated, which have found food abun- 

 dant at such extreme heights. Nests have been found between five and ten thousand 

 feet. All which I discovered were about seven to nine thousand. Nearer the lower 

 elevation the nesting season begins about the third week in April, and from here 



