282 



VERTEBRATES. 



pany, lite the turkey. It is of a restless, wandering disposition, 

 which does not leave it in captivity, the bird frequently wandering 

 foi several miles from its home. Like the turkey, the Pintado 

 lays its eggs in the closest concealment it can find. The eggs are 

 rathdr smaller than those of the hen, the shell is very thick, and 

 the oolor is a yellowish red, profusely spotted with dark brown. 



This is the bird that was called Meleagris by the ancients. 

 The sisters of Meleager were said to have been metamorphosed 

 into birds, whose feathers were sprinkled with the tears shed for 

 his death. 



The Common Partridge. — The bill is convex, strong, and 

 short ; the nostrils are covered above with a callous prominent rim; 



The Common Partridge. 



the orbits arc papillose ; the feet naked ; and most of the genus 

 are furnished with spurs. Their flesh is good to eat; their flight 

 is low and of a small compass ; and they run almost as soon aa 

 hatched. Partridges are found almost in every country, and in 

 every clime, from the torrid tracts tinder the equator, to the frozen 

 regions of the pole. It is very striking how, by the Vind arrange- 



