502 COMMON PARTRIDGE. 
down to the Rhone delta, as well as on the eastern side of the 
Adriatic ; but in the south, as a rule, it frequents the higher ground, 
and yields the plains to the Red-legged Partridge. It occurs on 
both sides of the Pyrenees up to 4,000 ft., and as far as the valley 
of the Douro in the Spanish Peninsula, especially in the moister 
regions to the west; in Italy it ranges to Naples, and in Central and 
Eastern Europe it is abundant. It can be traced to Asia Minor 
and the mountainous districts of Persia, and it also inhabits the 
south-west of Siberia, a larger and greyer race being found in the 
Altai Mountains ; while eastward the representative is the smaller 
P. barbata, the male of which has a golden-buff breast, and a deep 
black ‘horse-shoe’ mark below. 
The Partridge often pairs in February, but eggs are seldom laid 
until the end of April or the beginning of May. From 12-20 of 
these are often produced by a single hen; but as many as 33 have 
been found in one nest, from 23 of which the young were hatched 
and went off with the old birds, while 4 of the eggs left behind had 
live chicks in them. The usual colour of the shell is olive-brown, 
but pale blue or whitish varieties are not very uncommon: measure- 
ments 1°45 by 1°15 in. Incubation lasts 21-23 days. The young 
are attended by both parents with great assiduity, and I have seen 
the old birds show a bold front to a female Hen-Harrier for several 
minutes, while covering the retreat of their brood to the shelter of a 
hedge. The food consists of green leaves, grain, many species of 
insects, small snails &c. Breeding takes place in the first spring, 
but the old males are very pugnacious and molest the younger birds. 
The adult male may be distinguished from the adult female by 
the brighter yellowish chestnut on the head and throat, the greyer 
neck, and the dark brown ‘horse-shoe’ mark on the lower breast ; 
but in many districts young females (of the year) have this mark 
very fully developed, though old hens have not. At all ages, how- 
ever, the wing-coverts have buff cvoss-bars in the female, whereas 
there is only a longitudinal stripe in the male (Ogilvie Grant). The 
legs and feet are bluish-white in the adults, but yellowish-brown in 
the young, which resemble the female in plumage. Average length 
12°5; wing 6in. Varieties are common, but they are mostly found 
in young birds, though in some cases they seem to be connected 
with the nature of the soil frequented; Partridges from the clay 
being often poor in colour, while those from the gravel are very 
warm in tint. In some parts an increasing tendency to a white 
‘horse-shoe’ is apparent; while a black ‘horse-shoe’ has been 
found. 
