﻿78 
  A 
  MONOGRAPH 
  OF 
  THE 
  PHEASANTS 
  

  

  a 
  Russian 
  commander, 
  and 
  thrived 
  well. 
  Later 
  they 
  were 
  almost 
  shot 
  off, 
  then 
  

   protection 
  was 
  accorded 
  them 
  and 
  at 
  present 
  they 
  are 
  abundant 
  again. 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  north 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  Great 
  Caucasus, 
  in 
  the 
  neighbourhood 
  of 
  the 
  two 
  chief 
  

   river-beds, 
  the 
  Terek 
  and 
  the 
  Kuban, 
  pheasants 
  are 
  common 
  in 
  many 
  places. 
  The 
  

   line 
  from 
  the 
  Kuma 
  to 
  the 
  sea 
  forms 
  the 
  limit 
  of 
  northerly 
  distribution 
  ; 
  appearing 
  

   first 
  at 
  the 
  village 
  of 
  Obilnoe, 
  close 
  to 
  Georgiewsk, 
  it 
  becomes 
  common 
  at 
  Soldato- 
  

   Alexandrowsk, 
  and 
  so 
  on 
  to 
  the 
  shore 
  of 
  the 
  Caspian. 
  Pallas, 
  who 
  knew 
  the 
  bird 
  not 
  

   only 
  by 
  the 
  Russian 
  name 
  of 
  Fasan, 
  but 
  also 
  as 
  Madsharski 
  Petuch, 
  that 
  is, 
  the 
  Cock 
  

   of 
  Madshar, 
  knew 
  it 
  from 
  that 
  locality. 
  This 
  place, 
  on 
  the 
  left 
  bank 
  of 
  the' 
  Kuma, 
  is 
  

   at 
  present 
  an 
  insignificant 
  settlement. 
  In 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  Empress 
  Katharin, 
  it 
  was 
  

   customary 
  to 
  send 
  wine 
  from 
  this 
  region 
  to 
  the 
  court, 
  and 
  as 
  this 
  wine 
  closely 
  resembled 
  

   Burgundy, 
  the 
  place 
  was 
  called 
  Burgony-Madshari. 
  

  

  To 
  the 
  westward, 
  pheasants 
  are 
  sporadically 
  common 
  in 
  the 
  lower 
  basin 
  of 
  the 
  

   Kuban 
  and 
  along 
  the 
  eastern 
  shore 
  of 
  the 
  Black 
  Sea. 
  On 
  the 
  preserves 
  of 
  the 
  Grand- 
  

   Duke 
  Michail 
  Nicolajewitsch 
  the 
  birds 
  were 
  protected 
  for 
  several 
  years, 
  until 
  their 
  

   excessive 
  numbers 
  became 
  a 
  constant 
  source 
  of 
  destruction 
  to 
  the 
  crops 
  of 
  grain. 
  

   Farther 
  south, 
  along 
  the 
  coast, 
  they 
  become 
  scarcer, 
  and 
  seem 
  .to 
  be 
  wholly 
  absent 
  from 
  

   the 
  littoral 
  stretch 
  extending 
  from 
  Adler 
  to 
  the 
  district 
  of 
  Suchum. 
  Pheasants 
  have 
  

   been 
  reported 
  from 
  the 
  Kuban 
  delta 
  and 
  near 
  Temrjuk. 
  

  

  GENERAL 
  ACCOUNT 
  

  

  Although 
  man 
  is 
  the 
  pheasant's 
  greatest 
  enemy 
  at 
  present, 
  yet 
  there 
  are 
  few 
  

   moments 
  of 
  the 
  day 
  or 
  night 
  when 
  the 
  birds 
  are 
  quite 
  safe. 
  Even 
  in 
  the 
  darkness, 
  so 
  

   Radde 
  tells 
  us, 
  when 
  they 
  are 
  roosting 
  in 
  the 
  thin-foliaged 
  trees, 
  the 
  great 
  Caucasian 
  

   horned 
  owl 
  takes 
  heavy 
  toll 
  of 
  them. 
  During 
  feeding 
  hours 
  the 
  black 
  fox 
  and 
  the 
  jackal 
  

   stalk 
  the 
  birds 
  among 
  the 
  grass 
  or 
  reeds, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  air 
  their 
  two 
  chief 
  enemies 
  are 
  the 
  

   peregrine 
  falcon 
  and 
  the 
  goshawk. 
  The 
  latter 
  is 
  the 
  only 
  bird 
  used 
  in 
  falconry 
  in 
  

   Trans-Caucasia. 
  When 
  loosed 
  these 
  hawks 
  rarely 
  strike 
  the 
  pheasants 
  while 
  they 
  are 
  

   in 
  flight, 
  but 
  pursue 
  them 
  until 
  from 
  fear 
  they 
  alight 
  and 
  hide. 
  The 
  goshawk 
  then 
  

   perches 
  upon 
  some 
  adjacent 
  bush 
  or 
  tree 
  until 
  the 
  hunter 
  comes 
  up 
  with 
  his 
  dog, 
  which 
  

   soon 
  discovers 
  the 
  hidden 
  bird. 
  Should 
  the 
  pheasant 
  be 
  an 
  old 
  bird 
  it 
  will 
  probably 
  

   flush 
  a 
  second 
  time, 
  but 
  young 
  birds 
  so 
  Sread 
  the 
  waiting 
  bird 
  of 
  prey 
  that 
  they 
  may 
  

   often 
  be 
  caught 
  in 
  the 
  hand. 
  Sometimes 
  a 
  wild 
  hawk 
  will 
  keep 
  watch 
  on 
  the 
  crouching 
  

   pheasant 
  and 
  sail 
  about 
  overhead, 
  screaming 
  incessantly 
  ; 
  a 
  telltale 
  for 
  the 
  hunter, 
  who, 
  

   with 
  the 
  aid 
  of 
  his 
  pointer, 
  flushes 
  the 
  bird 
  and 
  easily 
  secures 
  it. 
  

  

  The 
  greatest 
  feral 
  enemy 
  of 
  the 
  Caucasian 
  Pheasant 
  is 
  the 
  jungle-cat, 
  which 
  is 
  

   found 
  in 
  every 
  bit 
  of 
  uncut 
  forest, 
  and 
  whose 
  chief 
  food 
  indeed 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  these 
  birds. 
  

   Guns, 
  falconry 
  and 
  the 
  jungle-cat 
  have 
  greatly 
  reduced 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  pheasants, 
  or 
  

   actually 
  exterminated 
  them 
  throughout 
  large 
  tracts 
  of 
  country. 
  In 
  Tiflis 
  the 
  market 
  

   price 
  of 
  a 
  brace 
  of 
  birds 
  has 
  already 
  advanced 
  to 
  over 
  two 
  rubles 
  (one 
  dollar), 
  whereas 
  

   formerly 
  they 
  would 
  have 
  brought 
  only 
  twenty 
  kopeks 
  (ten 
  cents). 
  The 
  systematic 
  

   hunting 
  in 
  winter 
  on 
  the 
  steppes 
  of 
  the 
  mid-courses 
  of 
  the 
  Terek 
  and 
  the 
  Kuban 
  will 
  

   undoubtedly 
  soon 
  reduce 
  the 
  bird 
  to 
  the 
  verge 
  of 
  extermination, 
  especially 
  as 
  an 
  

   unusually 
  severe 
  winter 
  works 
  terrible 
  havoc 
  among 
  them. 
  At 
  Christmas 
  time 
  there 
  

   regularly 
  arrived, 
  at 
  Tiflis 
  in 
  former 
  times, 
  great 
  German 
  wagons 
  laden 
  down 
  with 
  

  

  