136 



at Urik Burlea, behind the Retjezat, at an elevation of about 6000 feet. There was a covey; 

 and they had, no doubt, been bred there." It occurs in the countries skirting the Danube ; and 

 Messrs. Elwes and Buckley say (Ibis, 1870, p. 328) that it is " by far the commonest game-bird 

 both in Macedonia and Bulgaria. Very good bags are often made on the plains, as soon as the 

 harvest is got in ; and even the natives, who at present are armed with flint muskets five feet 

 long, manage to slaughter a good many. Though the Turks, as a nation, care very little about 

 sport, or any thing requiring exertion, yet villagers who are excellent pot-hunters and capital 

 shots are sometimes found." Dr. Kriiper states that it is said to occur on the northern frontiers 

 of Greece, but is unknown elsewhere in that country. Colonel Drummond-Hay states that it is 

 common in winter on the plains of Macedonia; and Lord Lilford writes (Ibis, 1860, p. 288): — 

 " It is common in the cultivated plains of Albania proper, in which provinces I have seen and shot 

 it near Antivari. In Epirus it is found in considerable numbers near Joannina, and in the plains 

 of Arta. I have also heard of its occurrence in the neighbourhood of Avlona, about eighty miles 

 north of the island of Corfu." 



In Southern Russia it is abundant everywhere throughout the steppes ; and with regard to 

 its range in Asia Minor I am indebted to Mr. C. G. Danford for the following notes, viz. : — " As 

 far as my knowledge, derived from experience and hearsay, extends, the present species does not 

 occur on the western shores of Asia Minor, though in Roumelia it is common enough, and plenty 

 are to be seen in the Pera game-shops. Nor have I ever observed it either on the southern coasts 

 or in the varied range of country between Mersina, on the Mediterranean, and Samsoun, on the 

 Black Sea. Still, although P. cinerea has not come under my personal notice, I have no hesi- 

 tation in saying that it not only occurs in Asia Minor but is in some districts of the interior 

 abundant. An English gentleman who has lived for some time in that country informed me 

 that it was not uncommon in the province of Angora ; and my friend Mr. Wilkin, H.B.M. Vice- 

 Consul at Adalia, told me that when living at Isbarta, between the great lakes of Ergerdir and 

 Buldur, he found the Grey Partridge almost as common as the Red-leg (P. chukar). Mr. Wilkin, 

 as a good sportsman, was not likely to have made any mistake as to species. Again, we have 

 the testimony of M. Tchihatcheff, who says (Asie Mineure, vol. ii. p. 764), ' La perdrix grise et 

 la perdrix rouge sont fort repandues en Asie Mineure, surtout la premiere, dont mainte fois j'ai 

 ete a meme d'observer les nombreux essaims qui peuplent les grandes plaines de la Lycaonie et 

 tout particulierement la region comprise entre Kararnan et Karabounar.' This evidence makes 

 our not meeting with this bird rather remarkable, as Kararnan does not lie much off the route 

 which we lately traversed ; nor is the lake-district far from Deneslii, which we visited on a former 

 occasion, and in which locality we could find no trace of it, although the cultivated character of 

 the country, through which the Meander flows, is well suited to its habits. It would therefore 

 appear that the range of P. cinerea in Asia Minor is a curiously isolated one, and sharply con- 

 fined to the centre of the peninsula." 



The present species is not known to occur in Africa, and it does not range far into Asia. 

 Dr. Severtzoff says that it is rare in winter in some parts of Turkestan ; and Major St. John 

 writes (E. Persia, ii. p. 273): — "The common Partridge is found all over Adarbaijan, possibly 

 extending through the Elburz as far east as Tehran. Taimur Mirza, the Shah's grand falconer, 

 assured me that this bird is found in the Lura or Karij valley, due north of that city." In 



