222



S. Porter—Wanderings in the Far East



crates have to be made, that is if one wants to be assured of the birds’

safe arrival in England. The ones I used and which accommodated one

pair of birds were 6 feet long, 3 feet high, and 2 ft. 6 in. wide. True,

I have seen birds shipped in much smaller crates, but I like my birds

to travel comfortably. Even this is not too large when one considers

that a fully plumaged male is over 6 feet in length. The freight on each

of these crates is about £7 and with dock charges, transport to and

from the docks, etc., food, and other things, Argus Pheasants are

quite expensive items by the time they are installed in our aviaries

and it is little wonder that they are not often offered for sale on the

home market.


Very few white people in Malaya have seen wild Argus ; even the

most experienced big game hunters will admit to never seeing this bird

though they have told me they have frequently come across the display

ground which is an open space in the forest kept clear of all vegetation

and where the male displays his marvellous wing feathers. Sometimes,

I was told, the Sakais, the primitive aborigines, who are forest-dwellers,

take the eggs of the Argus Pheasants, and hatch them under fowls and

sometimes tame Argus can be seen about the Sakai encampments.


The Argus is a wonderful harmony in browns, the full beauty of

which is only to be seen when the bird is in display. The primary wing

feathers with their pale blue shafts and wonderful symmetrical spotting

are one of the most perfect things in Nature. It is amazing to think

that the cock carries the enormous secondary wing feathers and the

elongated tail feathers, which one would think would be a great

hindrance in the battle of life, just for a more or less momentary

display. No doubt the knowledge that he has this hampering impedi¬

menta has developed a sense of extreme caution for in a wild state

no bird is more wary or suspicious than the Argus. The usual way the

natives trap these birds is by setting nooses near the display ground.

One sees practically no Malayan Argus for sale in Singapore ; the

birds offered for sale are the Bornean which are easily distinguished from

the other by the bright orange brown colouring at the base of the neck.


It must not be thought that one often sees these birds offered for

sale as this is not the case. One dealer only, who owns the Singapore

Zoo and who makes a speciality of Pheasants, has these birds for sale.



