818 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



coverts and those along edge of wing more suffused buff and more 

 narrowly barred. 



First winter. Male and female. — As juvenile. The juvenile 

 body-plumage is moulted (probably not completely) in early 

 autumn. First summer. — A partial moult of body -plumage takes 

 place in March after which body-plumage of male becomes rather 

 more like adult winter male, but still has some barred feathers on 

 flanks though a good many new ones are white unbarred.* 



Measurements and structure. — $ wing 247 (two 241)-257 mm., 

 tail 91-108, tarsus 64-70, bill from feathers 22-25 (14 measured). 

 $ wing 242-260. Primaries : <J ad. 2nd and 3rd longest, 1st 10-25 

 mm. shorter, 4th 20-31 shorter, 5th 5-10 shorter, 6th 25-40 shorter j 

 outer webs of 2nd to 6th abruptly emarginated, 4th narrow and 

 smaller (about equal to 6th) and basal half of inner web abruptly 

 reduced in width by about one-third, and tip of inner web with 

 more shallow emargination ; $ and juv. and 1st winter and summer $ 



Fourth primary of adult male Little Bustard to show emarginations. 



4th normal and only 2-5 mm. shorter than longest, 1st 20-30 

 shorter. Outer secondaries about as long as 10th primary, tips 

 broad and slightly rounded, innermost as long or nearly as long as 

 longest primaries, tips sharply rounded. Tail rounded, 18 feathers, 

 tips rounded. Rest of structure as Great Bustard but no bare 

 patches on sides of neck. 



Soft parts. — Bill blackish along ridge and tip, rest bluish-grey ; 

 legs and feet greyish -yellow ; iris pale yellow\ 



Characters and allied form. — For distinctions of O. t. tetrax 

 see footnote, page 816. Small size, absence of tufts of elongated 

 feathers, and black and white collars of adult summer male distin- 

 guish species from other British Bustards. 



Field -characters. — Prefers rough pastures and fallow fields with 

 rank growth of weeds, and when flushed rises with strong and 

 whistling flight, showing a surprising amount of white on the wing 

 to those who only know it from figures or skins. Quite a small bird 

 as compared with Great Bustard, and like it has sandy mantle and 

 white under-parts. Difficult to observe at rest but black and white 

 collar of male in spring is very characteristic. When in flight at 

 any height appears almost entirely white in the distance. (F. C.R.J.) 



* The 4th primary in the male is normal like that of the female in the 

 bird's first year. Mr. W. H. St. Quintin informs me that a male hatched in 

 captivity had the peculiar 4th primary of the adult after its first complete 

 moult, i.e. at the age of about 16 months. — H.F.W. 



