28 THE EASTERN OR CHINESE FRANCOLIN. 



Mr. Oates now writes : — 



" In British territory, this Francolin occurs only in the valley 

 of the Irrawaddy, from the frontier down to Prome. Below 

 this town it is rare or altogether absent. Laterally its range 

 extends from the foot of the Pegu Yoma range to the foot of 

 the Aracan range, but it is less abundant on the western side 

 of the river. From Thayetmyo to Shway-pandan, a distance of 

 25 miles, it occurs in extraordinary numbers, the country 

 consisting chiefly of gravel hills with bamboo jungle, inter- 

 mingled with abandoned clearings, in the dense vegetation of 

 which it loves to conceal itself. 



" The cry of the Francolin is heard everywhere and at all 

 seasons, in the early morning" and also late in the afternoon. 

 In the middle of the day, like most other birds, it is generally 

 silent. When about to call, it mounts a stump or a small ant 

 hill, or also, not unfrequently, a branch of a tree, in some cases 

 as much as fifteen feet above the ground. 



" This Francolin is rarely to be found in stubble, and I do not re- 

 member finding more than two birds in such ground in the course 

 of three or four years' experience. On the other hand, almost 

 every bamboo-clad hill- side, if well beaten, will yield five or six 

 birds. The bird is very loth to fly, and runs before the beaters 

 till want of cover compels it to take to the air ; and even when 

 thus flushed, it will descend to the ground as soon as possible. 

 The flight is very strong, and a bird on the wing affords a 

 very pretty shot. 



" The Thayetmyo district, where the bird is chiefly found, is 

 very dry, and there are very few streams or pools of water. The 

 Francolin must, therefore, I think, be able to go without drink- 

 ing for a long time. Its food appears, in addition to ants, 

 beetles, and so forth, to consist in great measure of buds and 

 shoots, and these probably afford the necessary moisture." 



Mr. Swinhoe has some interesting notes on this species. 

 He says : — 



" This bird is numerous in Hongkong, inhabiting the patches 

 of bushes and fern that so frequently occur in nooks and 

 depressions on the hill-sides, whence it is very difficult to flush 

 it, even with a good dog. If you mark a bird down, you are by 

 no means sure of putting it up again. It is a solitary bird and 

 does not associate in coveys. In the early mornings of April, 

 and during the greater part of the day, if cloudy, you may hear 

 them crying to each other on the hills around, that enclose 

 the happy valley. One male starts the song ' ke-kai, ke-kai, 

 ke-karr ; ' another, on an adjoining hill, defiantly repeats ; a 

 third, still further, is heard ; and even a fourth, until the notes 

 are lost, as it were, in a distant echo. The first bird then com- 

 mences again, adding greater emphasis to the last notes, and 

 the other birds take up the song in succession as before. When 

 heard near, these notes sound harsh to the ear, but at a distance 



