BUSTARD. 359 



The female differs much, the ground light cream-colour, mottled 

 speckled, and streaked on the neck and wings with brown and black, 

 in a beautiful manner, and some spots of dusky black on the back 

 and scapulars ; beneath from the breast cream yellow, obscurely 

 streaked with dusky ; head tufted behind as the male, but coloured 

 as the rest of the plumage ; mottled with brown on the wings, and 

 crossed with three or four dusky bands; quills dusky black ; legs as 

 in the male. 



Inhabits India, and called Churge; not uncommon at Bengal 

 called there by some the Florikin. — Sir J. Anstruther. 



I observe in some drawings, that the breast and under parts in the 

 male are deep brown, not black. In others in possession of Mr. 

 Lambert, I find this bird is called Cirris, that it is plentiful in India, 

 and much esteemed for eating, as the flesh is thought to be delicate, 

 and well flavoured. It seems to be greatly allied to the White-eared 

 Species. In Gen. Hardwicke's drawings it is called Trina Mayara, 

 in the Sanscrit, which means Grass Peacock. 



6— BLACK-HEADED BUSTARD. 



LENGTH nearly fifteen inches. Bill longish, black ; the whole 

 head black, descending as low as half the neck behind, and before 

 as far as the breast ; sides of the neck, and lower part of it behind, 

 the back, and wing coverts, dull greyish rufous, crossed with fine 

 lines of black ; the ends of the feathers margined with dull rufous ; 

 the under parts from the breast plain rufous cream-colour, with a 

 few undulations of brown on the latter; all the outer edge of the 

 wing, bastard wing, and quills black; tail much rounded, or slightly 

 cuneiform, undulated with lines and dots, and crossed with six or 

 seven dusky bars ; legs black, bare for three quarters of an inch 

 above the joint. 



Inhabits India. Found about Lucknow, called a Species of 

 Churge, but seems not to have been before described. — Sir John 

 Anstruther. 



