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Alex Hampe—Once More the Blue Crossoptilon



American museum and who had sent his boy to Kansu to obtain the

Pheasants. The faithful Chinaman had collected about seventy birds,

but about half of them succumbed on the way to Shanghai. The

remainder arrived in a most miserable condition, most of them were

almost bare of feathers and about eight died soon after arrival. The

others, placed in a very large aviary, soon picked up and at the end of

October, 1932, I was able to pack nine pairs and some single cocks for

America, while I took a perfect pair myself via Suez to Marseilles.

Two pairs remained in Shanghai, whether they have bred there, I do

not know. During the long journey my pair behaved in an exemplary

way and never gave me an anxious moment. In the tropics going from

Singapore to Sumatra it was very hot and the Crossoptilons gaped a

bit, but they kept their good appetite and seemed not to suffer half

as much as some Temminck’s Tragopans I had with me. All the cages

of my collection had false bottoms and this seems not advisable for

Crossoptilons. Evidently they are used to dig a good deal for their

food and therefore used to scatter all the paddy out of the tin as soon

as I placed it in the cage. Through the bamboo-crating they could

not reach the grains and I had, therefore, to remove the crate and clean

the cage with a little scraper. If I had not been present, I doubt

whether a sailor in charge of the birds would have observed this, and

the birds would have starved. I also surprised the cock one day when

he started to tear the padding of the cage top and to sample the cotton

wool under the lining. I had made this arrangement in order to avoid

bruised heads, but I think it is not advisable for birds with very strong

beaks like Crossoptilons and Impeyans.


Anyhow, I finally landed the pair in the best of condition and I feel

proud to have enriched the European aviaries by this beautiful and

evidently prolific pheasant. Almost all M. Delacour says about the

Blue Crossoptilon is correct, but I am sure he will forgive me if

I contradict him on a few points. He says that a lot of wild-caught

Crossoptilons were brought to California. There were a few wild-caught

birds amongst the lot of my American friend but they all died on the

way to Shanghai. All the others, and also the birds which I obtained

a few years ago, were birds reared in captivity by the Chinese in Kansu.

As mentioned by Mr. Stefani and myself there used to be a great demand



