226 THE RED JUNGLE-FOWL. 



Bonelli's Eagle, a great enemy of this species, must have caught 

 and devoured one. Whilst I was looking- round, one of my 

 dogs brought me from somewhere in the jungle round a freshly- 

 killed Jungle-Cock, in splendid plumage, but with the base of the 

 skull on one side pierced by what I at once concluded must 

 have been the spur of another cock. I put up for the day at a 

 Bunjara Perow, some two miles distant, and on speaking to the 

 men found that they knew the place well, and one of them said 

 that he had repeatedly watched the cocks fighting there, and 

 that he would take me to a tree close by whence I could see it 

 for myself. Long before daylight he guided me to the tree, 

 telling me to climb to the 4th fork, whence, quite concealed, I 

 could look down on the mound. When I got up it was too dark 

 to see anything, but a glimmer of dawn soon stole into the 

 eastern sky, which I faced ; soon after crowing began all round, 

 then I made out the mound dimly, perhaps 30 yards from 

 the base of the tree and 40 from my perch ; then it got 

 quite light and in a few minutes later, a Jungle-Cock ran out 

 on to the top of the mound and crowed (for a wild bird) 

 vociferously, clapping his wings, and strutting round and round, 

 with his tail raised almost like a domestic fowl. 



And here I should notice that although, as has often been 

 noticed, the wild cocks always droop their tails when running 

 away or feeding — in fact almost whenever you see them — yet I 

 believe from what I then and once subsequently saw, that, when 

 challenging rivals, they probably always erect the tail, and 

 I know (having twice so surprised them before they saw me 

 when watching for Cheetul and Sambhur from a tnackdn, near 

 water in the early morning) that when paying their addresses 

 to their mates, they do the same during the preliminary struts 

 round them. 



I learnt so much and no more ; there was a rush, a yelp ; the 

 Jungle-Cock had vanished, and I found that one of my wretched 

 dogs had got loose, tracked me, and was now careering wildly 

 about the foot of the tree. 



Next day I tried again, but without success. I suppose the 

 birds about had been too much scared by the dog, and I had to 

 leave the place without seeing a fight there ; but putting all the 

 facts together, I have not the smallest doubt that this was a real 

 fighting arena, and that, as the Bunjara averred, many of the 

 innumerable cocks in the neighbourhood did systematically 

 fight there. 



Only a week later I shot two cocks, who were tumbling head 

 over heels, a confused mass, with wings and legs interlaced in an 

 incredible manner, and on several other occasions, when watch- 

 ing and waiting, concealed and in silence, for larger game, I 

 have witnessed desperate battles between cocks who happened 

 to meet, attracted by each other's crows and flappings of wings, 

 near mv tree ambush. 



