490 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



Order PTEROCLETES. 



Middle-sized birds, outward appearance and some habits 

 strikingly like Pigeons', but bill suggestive of game-birds, without 

 soft basal part of Pigeons', nostrils covered by feathers except in 

 front. Palate schizognathous, nasals schizorhinal ; basi-pterygoid 

 processes present. Keel of sternum very high, ribs broad. The 

 very short tarsus feathered. Toes wide and short, soles covered 

 with hexagonal or roundish scutes, hallux absent or almost rudi- 

 mentary. Plumage very close and thick, feathers loose in skin as 

 in Pigeons, aftershafts present. Primaries 11, 5th secondary 

 absent. Rectrices 14-16. Sexes differently, but both always 

 more or less protectively, coloured. Young covered with down, 

 nidifugous. Eggs equally rounded both ends, double-spotted. 

 Two or three genera usually admitted. Inhabitants of steppe and 

 desert countries — south-west Europe, Asia, Africa. 



Genus SYRRHAPTES HI. 



Syrrhaptes Illiger, Prodr. Syst. Mamm. & Av., p. 243 (1811 — Monotype, 

 Tetrao paradoxa, Pall.). 



Tarsus feathered all round (no bare space along back as in 

 Pterocles), toes very broad, entirely feathered above, hind toe 

 (hallux) quite absent. Wings very long and pointed. Two species 

 Central Asia, only one making frequent but irregular visits to 

 Europe. 



SYRRHAPTES PARADOXUS 



365. Syrrhaptes paradoxus (Pall.)— PALLAS 'S SAND-GROUSE. 



Tetrao paradoxa Pallas, Reise d. versch. Prov. d. Russ. Reichs, 11, p. 712 

 pi. F (1773— Tartary desert). 



Syrrhaptes paradoxus (Pallas), Yarrell, in, p. 31 ; Saunders, p. 488. 



Description. — Adult male. Winter and summer. — Crown and 

 neck buffish-grey, fore -head faintly streaked blackish, fore -part of 

 crown, lores, over and under eye and ear-coverts and patch on 

 back of neck washed ochre-yellow, stripe from back of eye broaden- 

 ing to patch on sides of back of neck bright yellowish rust-red ; 

 rest of upper -parts warm sand-buff, each feather with broad sub- 

 terminal black band, scapulars with purplish -brown patch near 

 tip, concealed portion of all feathers with dark brown narrow wavy 

 bars ; upper tail-coverts speckled black and longer feathers with 

 black V-shaped lines ; chin whitish ; throat bright yellowish rust- 

 red extending to cheeks but divided from patch on back of neck by 

 grey ; lower -throat and breast buffish-grey with gorget of paler 

 feathers with narrow, subterminal black bars ; below this breast 

 more buff ; belly and flanks black mixed buff, feathers having 

 long black tips not entirely concealing buff basal portions ; vent and 

 lower -flanks whitish ; under tail-coverts with black central streaks 



