SOUTHERN AFRICA. 139 
Of birds, befides the ducks and geefe already noticed, were 
great variety of water-fowl, fuch as flamingos, pelicans, and 
feveral fpecies of cranes. Partridges, pheafants, and buftards 
were alfo very plentiful. The bird called in the Cape a phea- 
fant is in fad; a tetrao or groufe, with remarkably ftrong fpurs 
on the legs, and two fpurious ones juft below the knee-joint. 
Befides the two fpecies of buftards known in the colony by the 
name of korhaans^ at this place was a third which appeared to 
be by much the fineft bird in Southern Africa, and which, 
though fufficiently common, has not yet been defcribed in the 
Syjiema Natur/ie. It is called here the wilde pauw^ or wild pea- 
cock, a name common with another large and elegant bird, the 
ardea pavonina or balearic crane. The bird in queftion is an 
ot'is^ and is nearly as large as the Norfolk buftard. The feathers 
of the neck are long, very thick, and loofe, like thofe of a 
domeftic fowl, of a bright chefnut-color on the upper part, and 
an afli-colored blue under the throat and on the breaft. The 
feathers of the back beautifully undulated with black and brown 
lines, the belly white; the tail-feathers from fixteen to twenty 
in number, marked acrofs with alternate bars of black and white : 
the fpread of the wings feven feet, and the whole length of the 
bird three feet and an half. It is generally met with in the 
neighbourhood of farm-houfes ; and to all appearance might 
very eafily be domefticated : the flefh is exceeding good with a 
high flavor of game. In the vicinity of the woods we faw a 
great number of the falco ferpentarius^ ridiculoufly enough 
called the fecretary bird, from the long feathers of its creft 
being fuppofed to refemble the pens that it was the cuftom for 
merchants' clerks to ftick in the hair. The ferpentarius is the 
T 2 avowed 
