THE LITTLE BUSTARD. 
515 
tural laborers, plying their work, and gradually slipping towards the wary birds ; they walk 
behind cows, and, in fine, put into practice every device which their ingenuity, sharpened by 
experience, can suggest. 
The Gfreat Bustard is not fond of fiying, its wings having but a slow and deliberate move- 
ment; but on foot it is very swift, and tests the speed of dog and horse before it can be 
captured. 
The nest — if a hole in the ground may be called a nest — of this bird is generally made 
among corn, rye, etc., although it is sometimes situated in rather unexpected localities. The 
eggs are two or three in number, and of an olive-brown color, splashed with light brown, in 
which a green tinge is perceptible. The food of the bird is almost wholly of a vege+abJe nature, 
LITTLE BUSTARD.— (Ms tetrax. 
though it is said to feed occasionally upon mice, lizards, and other small vertebrates. The 
flesh of the Bustard is very excellent, but the extreme rarity of these birds prevents it from 
being often seen upon the tables. When caught young, the Bustard can be readily tamed, 
and soon becomes quite familiar with those who treat it kindly. 
The head and upper part of the neck are grayish-white, and upon the side of the neck 
there is a small patch of slaty-blue bare skin, almost concealed by the curious feather tuft 
which hangs over it. The upper part of the body is pale chestnut, barred with black, and 
the tail is of similar tints with a white tip, and a very broad black band next to the white 
extremity. The wing-coverts, together with the tertials, are white, and the primaries black. 
The under surface of the body is white. The total length of an adult male is about forty-five 
inches. 
The Little Bustard is an occasional visitor to the northern parts of Europe, and when- 
ever it does make its appearance, it almost invariably chooses the winter time. 
