876 



A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



Adult female. Winter. — Head like male but chestnut usually 

 rather paler and crown rather more spotted ; back of neck and 

 upper -mantle much browner than male and only tinged grey with 

 varying amount of pale buff shaft -streaks (often drop -shaped on 

 sides of neck) and some broad buff bars ; rest of upper -parts 

 browner less grey than male and penultimate sagittate band black- 

 brown or dark chestnut -brown (only occasionally so bright chestnut 

 as male) ; under -parts as male but breast rather more tinged buff, 

 horse -shoe mark usually white with only a few chestnut tips ; tail, 

 primaries, secondaries and greater coverts as male ; median and 

 lesser coverts, innermost secondaries and scapulars with less 

 chestnut, bases being dark brown or black with widely-spaced pale 

 buff bars. This plumage is acquired by complete moult as in male. 

 Summer. — A partial moult, varying in individuals in extent but 



JUV. 



The Common Partridge (Perdixp. perdix). Left-Land feathers— median coverts of adult 

 female and male ; right-hand, tips of 1st primaries of adult and 1st winter. 



more general than in male and often involving besides varying 

 number of body -feathers a few wing-coverts, takes place March to 

 May. New feathers at back and sides of neck and lower -throat with 

 pale shaft-streaks with drop-like spots often margined blackish, 

 those on rest of upper-parts brown-black narrowly tipped buff and 

 with widely-spaced and narrow pale buff bars, those on breast, 

 base of throat and base of sides of neck broadly barred brown-black 

 and greyish-white and those on sides of breast and flanks broadly 

 barred and marked buff and brown -black. 



Nestling. — Closely covered with soft down, shorter on head ; 

 tarsi and toes bare. Crown chestnut with a few small black spots 

 sometimes extending to lines ; back of neck with a wide black line 

 down centre, at sides pale buff marked black ; rest of upper-parts 

 pale buff with some rufous and black blotches or ill-defined lines, at 

 base of wings a spot, and on rump a patch, of chestnut ; fore-head 

 and sides of head pale yellow-buff (sometimes tinged rufous) with 

 spots, small blotches and lines of black ; chin and throat uniform 



