10 ELEMENTS OF OBlflTHOLOGy 



whole world. Its giant cousin, the Capercailzie (Tetrao uro- 

 gallus), ranges from Scandinavia and the Siberian valley of the 

 Tenesay to the Altai Mountains, the Alps, and the Pyrenees. 



A great contrast to the arboreal, polygamous, wild Caper- 

 cailzie, is that familiar denizen of our home-fields — the Par- 

 tridge (PerdicB cinerea), which faithfully pairs with its gentle 

 mate for life. For more than a hundred years it has had to 

 sustain an unequal contest with the stronger and more pugna- 

 cious red-legged kind (P. rufa) of South-western Europe, 



Fig. 6. 



The Californian Quail {Lophorti/x californicus). 



which was introduced in 1770, and has obtained a foothold 

 in the greater part of our Eastern Counties. That miniature 

 Partridge, the Quail (Coturnix communis), easily distinguished 

 by its smaller size, very short tail, and pointed wings, is also 

 a ground-bird like the Partridge, though it is well capable of 

 flight, as is proved by the prodigious multitudes which cross 

 the Mediterranean for a winter home in Afric.a. 



Of Quails there are some twenty kinds, ranging through the 

 Old World south of the Arctic regions. Birds nearly allied 



