﻿HUME'S 
  BARRED-BACKED 
  PHEASANT 
  181 
  

  

  occasion 
  seen 
  the 
  bird 
  leave 
  the 
  nest, 
  it 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  difficult 
  to 
  attribute 
  them 
  to 
  

   any 
  other 
  bird 
  than 
  Hume's 
  Pheasant. 
  The 
  junglefowl 
  does 
  not 
  breed 
  at 
  seven 
  thousand 
  

   feet 
  in 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  Burma, 
  and 
  the 
  eggs 
  are 
  much 
  too 
  small 
  for 
  any 
  of 
  the 
  forms 
  of 
  

   silver 
  or 
  kalij 
  pheasants 
  which 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  Chin 
  Hills 
  ; 
  and, 
  moreover, 
  

   though 
  superficially 
  just 
  like 
  junglefowl 
  eggs, 
  those 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  are 
  more 
  finely 
  grained, 
  

   with 
  a 
  closer 
  texture, 
  slightly 
  glossed, 
  and 
  with 
  much 
  thinner 
  shells 
  in 
  proportion 
  to 
  

   their 
  size. 
  

  

  " 
  Eggs 
  very 
  similar 
  to 
  those 
  in 
  my 
  collection 
  are 
  four 
  eggs 
  laid 
  by 
  P. 
  elegans 
  in 
  the 
  

   Zoological 
  Society's 
  Gardens 
  at 
  Regent's 
  Park, 
  and 
  which 
  are 
  now 
  in 
  the 
  Natural 
  History 
  

   Museum. 
  Both 
  P. 
  scintillans 
  and 
  ellioti 
  also 
  lay 
  cream 
  or 
  stone-coloured 
  eggs, 
  so 
  that 
  

   there 
  is 
  really 
  nothing 
  extraordinary 
  in 
  the 
  Hume's 
  bird 
  doing 
  the 
  same. 
  

  

  " 
  In 
  shape 
  they 
  are 
  broad 
  ovals, 
  but 
  a 
  little 
  compressed 
  towards 
  the 
  smaller 
  end, 
  and 
  

   do 
  not 
  appear 
  to 
  vary 
  much. 
  In 
  length 
  the 
  thirty 
  eggs 
  of 
  which 
  I 
  have 
  measurements 
  

   vary 
  between 
  45^2 
  and 
  52*8 
  mm., 
  and 
  in 
  breadth 
  between 
  33 
  - 
  2 
  and 
  376 
  mm., 
  the 
  average 
  

   being 
  477 
  and 
  35*3 
  mm. 
  These 
  pheasants 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  early 
  breeders, 
  for 
  both 
  the 
  

   clutches 
  obtained 
  in 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  April 
  were 
  so 
  hard 
  set 
  that 
  they 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  laid 
  in 
  

   March, 
  and 
  though 
  it 
  is 
  hardly 
  safe 
  to 
  generalize 
  on 
  such 
  scanty 
  material, 
  the 
  15th 
  of 
  

   March 
  to 
  the 
  15th 
  of 
  May 
  is 
  probably 
  the 
  limit 
  of 
  their 
  breeding 
  season." 
  

  

  A 
  letter 
  from 
  Mr. 
  Cook 
  to 
  Baker 
  completes 
  about 
  all 
  that 
  we 
  know 
  of 
  this 
  interesting 
  

   pheasant 
  : 
  Hume's 
  Pheasant 
  " 
  I 
  often 
  saw 
  and 
  shot. 
  The 
  birds 
  were 
  generally 
  to 
  be 
  

   found 
  in 
  somewhat 
  open 
  jungle, 
  where 
  the 
  trees 
  are 
  principally 
  oaks 
  and 
  similar 
  species, 
  

   and 
  where 
  one 
  finds 
  undergrowth 
  and 
  open 
  spaces 
  of 
  long 
  grass, 
  or 
  long 
  grass 
  and 
  

   bracken 
  mixed. 
  Near 
  Minkin 
  I 
  found 
  them 
  in 
  steep 
  grass 
  slopes, 
  and 
  here 
  they 
  were 
  

   by 
  no 
  means 
  uncommon, 
  and 
  associated 
  in 
  small 
  flocks 
  or 
  family 
  parties. 
  On 
  one 
  

   occasion 
  I 
  flushed 
  no 
  less 
  than 
  eight 
  or 
  ten 
  birds 
  from 
  an 
  anthill 
  overgrown 
  with 
  grass 
  

   and 
  crowned 
  with 
  a 
  clump 
  of 
  dwarf 
  dates, 
  upon 
  the 
  fruit 
  of 
  which 
  I 
  think 
  the 
  pheasants 
  

   were 
  feeding. 
  As 
  far 
  as 
  my 
  experience 
  goes, 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  fly 
  very 
  far 
  when 
  first 
  flushed, 
  

   and 
  as 
  a 
  rule 
  they 
  fly 
  low 
  down, 
  seldom, 
  if 
  ever, 
  rising 
  above 
  the 
  tops 
  of 
  the 
  trees 
  ; 
  nor 
  

   does 
  their 
  flight 
  strike 
  one 
  as 
  being 
  at 
  all 
  fast, 
  and 
  compared 
  with 
  the 
  English 
  pheasant 
  

   it 
  seems 
  very 
  much 
  slower. 
  They 
  are 
  not 
  hard 
  birds 
  to 
  flush, 
  especially 
  the 
  first 
  time, 
  

   but 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  always 
  had 
  a 
  dog 
  out 
  with 
  me 
  when 
  after 
  these 
  birds 
  I 
  cannot 
  speak 
  with 
  

   much 
  authority 
  on 
  this 
  point. 
  When 
  alighting 
  after 
  the 
  first 
  flight 
  they 
  often 
  run 
  

   considerable 
  distances, 
  but 
  one 
  may 
  put 
  a 
  bird 
  up 
  time 
  after 
  time 
  from 
  almost 
  the 
  exact 
  

   spot 
  at 
  which 
  he 
  drops. 
  

  

  " 
  They 
  are 
  such 
  beautiful 
  birds 
  that 
  their 
  very 
  beauty 
  has 
  sometimes 
  saved 
  their 
  

   lives 
  when 
  I 
  have 
  really 
  wanted 
  them 
  badly 
  : 
  their 
  skins 
  as 
  specimens 
  and 
  their 
  flesh 
  

   for 
  the 
  pot. 
  To 
  see 
  half 
  a 
  dozen 
  cock 
  birds 
  rise 
  almost 
  at 
  one's 
  feet 
  and 
  then 
  scatter 
  

   in 
  all 
  directions, 
  the 
  wonderful 
  blue 
  and 
  white 
  feathers 
  of 
  their 
  rumps 
  showing 
  up 
  like 
  

   flags 
  against 
  the 
  rest 
  of 
  the 
  brilliant 
  plumage, 
  is 
  a 
  most 
  extraordinary 
  sight, 
  and 
  I 
  have 
  

   found 
  the 
  blaze 
  of 
  colour 
  so 
  gorgeous 
  and 
  attractive 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  sometimes 
  been 
  

   arrested 
  in 
  the 
  very 
  act 
  of 
  raising 
  my 
  gun 
  to 
  fire, 
  and 
  have 
  instead 
  stood 
  to 
  watch 
  

   them 
  and 
  enjoy 
  the 
  sight. 
  

  

  " 
  I 
  think 
  wherever 
  I 
  have 
  found 
  this 
  bird 
  there 
  have 
  been 
  outcrops 
  of 
  rock 
  here 
  

   and 
  there 
  in 
  the 
  grass 
  they 
  frequent. 
  In 
  some 
  cases 
  these 
  outcrops 
  are 
  scattered 
  and 
  

   few, 
  but, 
  again, 
  very 
  thick 
  and 
  plentiful, 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  patches 
  of 
  grass 
  form 
  little 
  roads 
  in 
  

  

  