328 USEFUL BIRDS. 
When the broods are scattered by the gunner, they are 
reassembled again by a whistled call of the old bird, which 
has been given, “ka-loi-kee, ka-loi-kee,” and is answered by 
the whistled, repeated response, “whoil kee.” The syllables 
are almost run together. The first call is uttered with a 
rising and the other with a falling inflection. It is plainly 
the rallying call and answering cry. When the scattered 
covey gets together, musical twitterings are often heard. 
At night they repair to some favorite locality, where they 
‘sleep on the ground in a ring, heads out and shoulder to 
shoulder. ‘In this formation there are always some birds to 
face and discover danger, upon whichever side it approaches. 
One spring into the air gives each bird wing room, and off 
they fly in all directions, an animated “feathered bombshell,” 
exploding in the darkness with a roar of pinions sufficient to 
startle and possibly baffle an enemy, as the belated traveller 
who has happened to disturb them at night will attest. They 
sometimes gather into the same formation in the daytime. 
In Massachusetts the birds usually roost in thickets, black- 
berry tangles, or woods, and often use the same roosting 
place for several nights in succession. They feed largely in 
fields, gardens, and cultivated land; but when pursued they 
often take to the swamps or woods, where they perch in trees, 
usually on the side farthest from the pursuer, sitting upright 
on the branches or crouching close to the trunk. Their 
habits during the shooting season are well known. A great 
deal of ink has been used in discussing the question whether 
the Quail is able to “hold its scent,” as it is a well-known 
fact that dogs are frequently at fault in trailing this bird. 
When the dog is alone, the bird, even in open ground, 
apparently gives itself little uneasiness, but simply settles 
quietly down where it stands until it lies flat on its breast, 
with head drawn down so close to the shoulders that it 
might well pass for a brown clod. It remains thus, allows 
the dog to pass within a few yards or even a few feet, and 
keeps quiet until all danger is past. But let a human being 
appear, and much greater precautions are taken. I have 
seen a bird in open ground run and hide in a slight hol- 
low, or conceal itself by crouching between two sections of 
