62 PHEASANTS FOB COVERTS AND AVIARIES. 



and eighty eggs for tame rearing " ; but such a degree of 

 prolificacy in wild pheasants is a higher average than has 

 ■ever come under my notice. 



Another point of very considerable importance with regard 



to the breeding of pheasants in preserves is the number of 



cooks that should be left in the spring in proportion to the 



number of hens. There is no doubt whatever that in a 



state of nature pheasants are polygamous^ the stronger males 



driving away the weaker^ and taking possession of several 



hens to constitute their seraglios ; hence the custom to shoot 



■down most of the cocks, and leave all the hens, even the 



oldest to breed. It is probable that this procedure is 



frequently carried too far, and in confirmation of this view I 



have much pleasure in quoting Mr. J. D. Dougall, who, in 



his " Shooting Simplified," says : " It is customary to shoot 



■cock pheasants only, and to impose a fine upon the sportsmen 



who break this rule, the money being escheated to the head 



keeper, or applied to defray the expenses of a dinner at the 



■end of the season, when shootings are rented by a party 



of gentlemen. This rule is very frequently overstretched. 



It should not be forgotten that the desired end may be 



frustrated by having too many hens, as well as by haviug 



too few, and in whatever way the disproportion of sexes 



is caused, the result — deduction in increase — is the same. 



If the cocks are continually killed down, few male birds 



will arrive at that complete maturity so essential to producing 



■a healthy stock. On the other hand, if the hens are 



continually spared, they will not only grow out of proportion 



to the number of cocks, but the aged hens will beat off the 



two and three year old birds. Very old hens should certainly 



be destroyed. The most prolific are the two and three vear 



old birds." 



A correspondent who supports this view writes: "It is 

 very certain that in many instances too few cocks are 

 frequently left in preserved coverts at the end of the season ; 

 it is also notorious that in the neighbourhood of many 



