trappers and the encroachments of civilization. We occasionally saw 
these birds scurrying through the shrubbery, or heard their very loud, 
lilting call, in many an Indian and Pakistani city. Malcolm MacDonald 
(31), British Ambassador to India in the late 1950's, observed gray 
francolins nesting in his 3-acre garden in the heart of New Delhi. They 
were still so abundant in 1961-62 that our chief trapper reported from 
500 to 1000 birds a week were being sold, illegally, in the bazaars of 
New Delhi during fall and winter months. In our experience there are 
still not many areas in Pakistan or India where favorable habitat is 
without its complement of gray francolins in spite of more or less 
constant harassment from hunters and trappers. 
Description 
Field Identification 
The gray francolins are distinctive partridge-like birds almost 
twice the size of the Gambel's quail. The general color is brownish, 
the breast buff, prominently barred with black; back chestnut and brown 
barred with buff; outer tail feathers chestnut. There is a distinct 
gorget line around. the rufous or whitish throat. Sexes are alike except 
for long, sharp spurs on the males. 
Key to Subspecies 
Baker (6) gives the following key to the subspecies of the gray 
francolin: 
A. Darker; center of throat ochraceous - F.p. pondicerianus 
B. Paler; center of throat creamy-white - F.p. interpositus 
C. Palest; plumage generally more gray and less chestnut - 
F.p. mecranensis 
Coloration of northern gray francolin (F.p. interpositus) 
The description of the northern gray francolin as given by Baker (6) 
and modified by our inspection of several thousand birds, wild-trapped 
in northern and western India, is as follows: 
Male -- Forehead and supercilium pale rufous, the latter paler; 
crown and nape brown. Sides of head pale rufous, speckled with black on 
the lores, upper cheek, and behind the eye. Chin and throat creamy white 
surrounded with a prominent black transverse line on the foreneck and 
upper breast. Upper plumage pale grayish-brown mixed with pale buff and 
with pale fulvous cross bars, edged with black. The back, scapulars and 
wing coverts much mixed with chestnut. Primaries brown with indistinct 
white spots near the tip of the outer webs developing into bars on the 
outer secondaries. Inner secondaries with much black on the inner webs; 
the tips mottled with brown and fulvous. Upper tail coverts and rump 
vermiculated with indistinct dark bars. Inner tail coverts, scapulars 
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