. SAND-GROUSE. 35 



to traverse great distances in a remarkably short space o£ time. The 

 majority are migratory, some of them wandering thousands of miles. 

 As their name implies, they are for the most part inhabitants of the 

 sandy deserts, where water is generally scarce and in the dry season 

 only to be met with at long intervals. Sand-Grouse cannot exist 

 without water, and drink regularly in the early morning and at evening, 

 when they visit the nearest pool in countless numbers, their powerful 

 wings rendering distance no obstacle. The legs and toes, which are 

 remarkably short, seem ill-adapted for walking, but tlie birds are 

 perfectly at home on the ground, and can run much more easily and 

 rapidly than might be supposed. 



No nest is made, merely a slight hollow is scratched in the ground. 

 The eggs are nearly perfect ovals, double- spotted (very similar to those 

 of the common Land-rail), and almost invariably three in number. The 

 young, which are able to run soon after they are hatched,' are covered 

 with beautifully-patterned down, but quite different from the fluffy 

 down of young Game-Birds, each plume of the body being distinct and 

 almost scale-like in appearance. All the species ai'c included in one 

 family and are well represented in the Table-case (192-198). 



Great interest attaches to Pallas's Three-toed Sand-Grouse [Syr- 

 rhaptes paradoxus) (192), on account of its irregular migrations into 

 Western Europe. Its true home, as may be seen on the map showing 

 its distribution, is the Kirghiz Steppes and Central Asia, but for some 

 unknown cause great numbers periodically visit Europe in the early 

 summer, even penetrating to Great Britain and other islands off the 

 western coasts. The first great visitation took place in 1863, and again 

 in 1888 enormous numbers spread themselves over Europe and bred in 

 various places, both eggs and young having been obtained. In other 

 years smaller flocks have been observed, but the species has never 

 succeeded in establishing itself permanently in Western Europe. 



Order III. TURNICIFOBMES. 



Family TuRNiciDiE. Hemipodes. 



The Hemipodes or Bustard-Quails {Turnicidce) form a family by [TaUe- 

 themselves. They are small birds resembling Quails, but distinguished '^^^■■ 

 externally by the absence of a hind-toe, except in the Australian genus 

 Pedionomus (294), and internally by many structural characters of 

 importance. The female is always larger and more handsomely 

 marked than the male, who undertakes the duty of hatching the 

 eggs and caring for the young. The latter are covered with patterned 

 down, like young wading birds, and are able to run soon after 



I) 2 



