CLASS II. AYES: ORDEE 1. GRALLATORES. 
397 
THE GREAT BUSTARD. 
YoL. II.— 38 
THE BLACK-BILLED BUSTAKD. 
slender form, long wings, and a cer- 
tain swallow-like appearance. The 
Collared Pratincole of Europe, 
G. pratincola — the Sea Partridge 
of the French — runs and flies with 
great swiftness, and feeds on aquatic 
insects, often taking them on the 
wing ; found in the tenaperate parts 
of Europe, Asia, and Africa. 
Genus CURSORIUS : Cursorius. 
— This includes the Coursers, 
which are noted as running with 
great swiftness, and of which there 
are several species. The Cream- 
colored Courser, C.^uropceus, is 
ten and a half inches long, and 
resembles the plovers in its habits ; 
found in Middle Europe. It is 
sometimes called the Cream-colored 
fi Plover. 
THE BUSTARDS. 
These birds are generally of large 
size, and live upon heaths and dry 
plains, in various j)arts of the east- 
ern hemisphere. They run rapidly 
and fly well, although they rise with 
difiiculty. Their food consists prin- 
cipally of worms and insects, with a few 
reptiles, and even small mammalia, and 
birds. Green vegetables also appear to 
constitute a part of their diet. They are 
said to be polygamous, and the males take 
no part in incubation, butretreatto marshy 
places, while the females lay and hatch 
their eggs among tall herbage, frequently 
in corn-fields. During the breeding sea- 
son the males are seen in fine days, dis- 
playing themselves like turkey-cocks, 
spreading their tails, drooping their wings, 
and dilating their throats. 
Genus OTIS : Otis. —This includes the 
Great Bustard, 0. tarda, forty-five 
inches long ; pale chestnut, barred with 
black above; beneath white. It feeds on 
green wheat, grapes, trefoil, and other 
vegetable substances. The nest is a de- 
pression in the bare ground; the eggs 
are two, and olive-brown ; the flesh is 
excellent, and it is often seen in the mar- 
kets of countries where it is found. It is 
common in Southern Europe, and was for- 
merly abundant in some parts of Eng- 
land, but has become nearly extinct there. 
Macqueen's Bustard, 0. Macqueeni, 
