i6 A MONOGRAPH OF THE PHEASANTS 



the midst of some thicket or coppice at any hour of the day, but is not of very 

 frequent occurrence. It is generally uttered when the bird rises, and if it flies into 

 a tree near, often continued some time. When flushed by a wild cat or other small 

 animal, this chuckling is always loud and earnest." Again we read that "the call 

 of the bird, which may be heard at all times of the day, is a sharp twut I twut ! 

 twut ! sometimes very low, with a long pause between each note, then suddenly 

 increasing loudly and excitedly. Generally speaking, when uttering this cry, which 

 at times might be mistaken by any one unacquainted with it for that of some small 

 bird, the kaleege is alarmed by a prowling marten, or a hawk hovering overhead, 

 perhaps a dog, but still oftener it is heard when a pair of cocks are about to 

 engage in mortal combat." The call of the younger birds is noticeably harsher, less 

 sibilant than that of the adult pheasants. Aside from the vocal utterances uttered 

 under stress of excitement or fear, the kaleege is rather a silent bird. 



The present genus is characterized by a kind of instrumental music, closely 

 akin to the drumming of the American rufl*ed grouse, but this whirring, produced 

 by the rapid vibration of the wings, is chiefly of the nature of a challenge, so that 

 I shall treat of it more in detail under the notes on courtship and fighting. 



The food, as far as I could ascertain, is obtained only upon the ground. A 

 very reliable observer, however, reports that he has twice seen them perched in 

 bushes, feeding upon berries. Unlike the Impeyan, the pheasants of this genus are 

 essentially scratchers, and, like the common fowl, dig vigorously first with one, then 

 the other foot, sending the earth flying, and in productive spots the kaleege dig 

 hollows of considerable depth and extent. Their food has been rather indefinitely 

 and comprehensively stated to consist of grubs, roots, insects, seeds, berries, leaves, 

 acorns, soft roots and the young shoots of shrubs. 



In Garhwal, in the month of May, I found these White-crested Kaleege feeding 

 chiefly upon small moths of several species. Agrotis consanguinea Moore, was by 

 far the commonest species, together with several small Geometridae. The following 

 is a detailed summary of the food of four pheasants, shot on different days and in 

 different places, but within a radius of twenty miles. 



I.— (^ Shot 9.30 a.m. Crop empty; gizzard contained a comminuted mass of food, 

 including an earwig, a small centipede, many small bits of moss and 

 numerous young fern-shoots. 



2.— <^ Shot 6 p.m. Crop full, contained i spider, 3 small centipedes, i moth, 2 

 small beetles— a Tenebrionid of the tribe Helopini, and an Elater— 20 

 small snails of several species (Nanina glauca Benson, Nanina percotteti 

 Pfr., Cyclotus straiigulahtm Hutton) ; 1 1 green leaves of Sarcococca 

 pruniformis; i dead leaf, 3 roots and a large leaf-stalk of a fern, probably 

 an Aspidium; 30 three-cornered brown seeds of some conifer; 12 pea-like 

 seeds; 18 white Daphne blossoms; several leaves of a Smilax ; i large 

 leaf and many round brown fruits of a Vitis ; besides a mass of com- 

 minuted vegetable matter. The gizzard contained similar food, much 

 comminuted. 



3.— (^ Shot 4.30 p.m. Crop contained 38 moths— (all but one were Agrotis consan- 



