94 NATURALIST'S CABINET. 



Description. 



hen ; the throat is of a sort of brown or dirty 

 colour. The middle of the feathers on the back 

 are black, but the sides are rather reddish, ot 

 ash-coloured ; it has transverse white lines, run- 

 ning across the thighs. Some of the wing-fea- 

 thers, especially the lesser rows, are of a deep 

 yellow ; the tail is about two inches long, the legs 

 are bare of feathers above the knees, the feet of 

 a whitish colour. It has a stalking gait, and is 

 by the Italians called the great quail, or the king 

 of quails, and is said to be the leader or guide of 

 those birds, from one place to another. They 

 are said to feed upon snails, worms, and all kinds 

 of small insects. 



They are but rarely seen in England, but are 

 very common in many parts of Ireland. 



THE JTTAGEN. 



THIS bird has a short black bill, hooked, and 

 sharp at the end. The body is of various co- 

 lours. The head is quite beautiful, and adorned 

 with a fine tuft, or top-knot, of a brownish co- 

 lour, chequered with black and white spots. It has 

 black eyes, with a brown circle, and the skin of the 

 eye-lid is scarlet. The throat, or the part under- 

 neath the bill is covered with some very fine 

 longish feathers, which hang down in the man- 

 ner of a beard. It has a long neck, which, like 

 the rest of the body, is slender and taper, of an 





