Dr. E. Coues —Field Notes on Lophortyx gambeli. 55 
of the plume are cast very gradually, so that, though instances 
do occur, it is unusual to find a bird entirely deprived of this 
ornament. 
Compared with the eastern Quail (0. virginianus) , from the 
sportsman's standpoint, Gambel's Plumed Quail is more difficult 
to kill. Not that it rises with more startling suddenness, or 
flies faster; for I noticed no material difference in these respects. 
But when a bevy is flushed, and one, or at most two birds se¬ 
cured, it is exceedingly difficult, and usually only by chance, 
that other shots are obtained. For, except under certain cir¬ 
cumstances, they lie very badly; and when they drop after 
being for the first time started, it is not usually to squat and 
remain hid, but to run as fast and as far as possible ; so that if 
found at all, it will be dozens of yards from where they were 
marked down. This propensity to run, which is also a great 
obstacle to their being flushed within a proper distance, is ex¬ 
ceedingly troublesome both to the sportsman and his dog ; so 
much so, that the best-trained dogs can often be of but little or 
no service. It is true that this habit of running affords many 
shots on the ground, and often places the whole bevy directly 
under fire; but no true sportsman would thus ingloriously fill 
his bag by “ potting" a bevy of such noble game-birds. Like 
all the tribe, their flight is exceedingly rapid and vigorous ; but 
it is always even and direct, so that it only requires a very quick 
hand and eye, and the usual intuitive calculation for cross-shots, to 
kill them readily. Notwithstanding all that I have heard to the 
contrary, I consider them far from being tough birds; and 
No. 8 shot is abundantly large enough for them. The fault in 
most cases, I presume, is with the shooter rather than the shot, 
I may add that many of the places in which bevies are to be 
found would compare unfavourably with the worst Woodcock- 
brake of the Eastern States as regards facilities for obtaining a 
fair shot. I have had a bevy flushed all around me, and hardly 
caught a glimpse of a feather. But these and all other difficul¬ 
ties should only increase one's ardour, and confer additional 
value on the lovely birds when obtained. 
Fort Whipple, Arizona, 1 (% 
August 1st, 1865. 
