Distribution. 35 



numerous. " The pheasant," writes Mr. Sterland, in his 

 " Birds of Sherwood Forest," " abounds on all the estates in 

 the forest district, and to such an extent that few would 

 credit the immense numbers. They are almost as tame as 

 barndoor fowls, and may be seen on the skirts of the various 

 plantations. Carefully tended and fed, and all their natural 

 enemies destroyed, they become so accustomed to the presence 

 of man that in many parts they will hardly take the trouble 

 to get out of the way, and are scarcely entitled to the appella- 

 tion of wild. Under circumstances so favourable, they multiply 

 rapidly, but a natural limit seems to be set to their increase, 

 and frequently, where they are most abundant, large numbers 

 are found dead without apparent cause ; these are always 

 exceedingly fat and their plumage in the glossiest condition ; 

 they seem to drop down and die without a struggle. I have 

 had them brought to me in this state, and have found their 

 flesh plump and of good colour, and every feather smooth 

 and perfect." I should rather incline to attribute the death 

 in these cases to apoplexy, arising from over-feeding on maize 

 and stimulating artificial food, than to any epidemic disease 

 arising from overcrowding, as this attacks the young and 

 destroys them long before they arrive at maturity. 



" In Norfolk," writes Mr. Stevenson, in his admirable work 

 on the birds of that county, " there are many portions where 

 the pheasant exists in a perfectly wild state, and thrives well 

 under the protection of the game laws, both soil and cHmate 

 being alike favourable. It is in such districts, almost exclu- 

 sively, that one still meets with the pure Phasianus colchicus 

 free from any trace of the ring-necked or Chinese cross in its 

 plumage, but offering at the same time a poor contrast to those 

 hybrid birds both in size and weight. Besides the thick 

 undergrowth in woods and plantations, pheasants are particu- 

 larly partial to low, damp situations, such as alder and osier 

 carrs, by the river side. In this country, also, stragglers from 

 some neighbouring coverts are not infrequently found on 

 the snipe marshes surrounding the Broads, where the sports- 



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