W. cook's TURKEY, OOOSIC, AND I'HICASANT DOOK. J 



There is a great deal in this, but it must be botne 

 in mind when pheasants have their liberty, the male 

 birds will often go miles in search of other hens. In 

 this way fresh blood is obtained or partly so, then again, 

 as a rule, it is only the strongest of the young pheasants 

 survive. 



Cock pheasants will fight a great deal, and if there i.s 

 a weakly one, the strongest are sure to kill him or drive 

 him away, so that he has no opportunity to have any 

 intercourse with the hens. Should there be any weakly 

 young ones hatched out when they are all running at 

 liberty, what becomes of them ? They die off before 

 they are ten days old, it is only the strongest which 

 survive. 



If a hen pheasant hatches fifteen or eighteen young 

 ones, there is seldom more than from six to nine reared, 

 and they are just the strongest which can follow the hen. 



A hen pheasant is not so careful of her young as an 

 ordinary hen, or even a partridge. The latter is far more 

 intelligent than a pheasant. If a hen partridge misses a 

 young one or two, she will go back and brood them 

 when they are weakly and have been dabbling through 

 the wet grass, and the strong ones she will call to her, 

 or in many cases the cock bird takes charge of them and 

 broods them. 



A hen pheasant will walk alone and the strong ones have 

 to follow her, while the weaker ones are left behind to 

 die. Partridges are particularly intelligent as regards 

 rearing their young, the latter are under great control. 

 The hen will not allow the little ones to go from her in 



