342 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



Occasionally when the Quail or Sand Grouse chicks (kyllinger) 

 were about to break the shell, it became somewhat impatient, 

 and pecked at the egg in order to let the chicken out, and in 

 consequence two fully developed young Sand Grouse perished in 

 the shell. The first chick, hatched on July 9th, was too firmly 

 attached to the shell, and from the haemorrhage caused by the 

 loosening of the membrane it became very weak, and died the 

 same day. 



Three others which at various times were hatched, and 

 became fully developed and lively, were smothered under the 

 hen a few hours later, although, warned by previous experience, 

 I watched them closely, and would have taken them from the 

 hen as soon as they had become dry. 



Two of these, hatched on July 24th, were very lively, and 

 I was already congratulating myself that success was at length 

 achieved. I would only have to allow them to rest a little after 

 their great efforts, which it appears the Sand Grouse must exert 

 to break the shell, for the chipping commences about the 20th — 

 21st day, whilst the young bird does not appear until the 

 23rd — 24th day. But in less than a quarter of an hour after 

 I had last seen them, they both lay smothered beneath the hen. 



At length, on August 6th, two chicks were safely hatched. 

 I took them from the hen in due time, and placed them in a 

 tolerably simple " artificial mother" (kunstig moder), made of 

 an oblong tin tray, the lower part of a bird-cage (fuglebur), 

 under which a small oil-lamp was placed, to give the necessary 

 warmth. 



It only remained to find suitable food to rear them on. 

 I tried moistened ants' eggs mixed with egg-bread, and yolk of 

 egg, together with bruised millet-seed ; but although the much 

 smaller Francolin Quails (Frankolin-Yagtler), which were hatched 

 almost at the same time, thrived well on this, and easily swallowed 

 an ant's egg, the Sand Grouse, which were awkward and helpless 

 (ubehjelpsomme) in the extreme, seemed unable to find nourishment 

 in it, and one died on Aug. 11th. Unfortunately, I had thought 

 too late of trying them with grass- and clover-seed (gnesfro og 

 l.lnrcrfro). The survivor thrived well on this, and is now (9th 

 April, 1892) in the best of health, and very tame. Its colour is 

 at present like that of the adult female. It is somewhat smaller 

 than the old bird, but is perhaps not yet full grown. 



