Part 30

The BLACK PARTRIDGE (_Francolinus vulgaris_) is of a deep black on the brow, cheeks, and breast; the feathers on the back of the head are edged with red, and streaked with white; the ear-feathers are pure white; those on the centre of the throat are reddish brown, and form a broad collar; the mantle-feathers are black, bordered with red, and spotted with white, those of the lower back finely striped black, and more or less spotted and lined with white. The thighs and lower tail-covers have the feathers tipped with brown; the quills are black and red, those at the exterior black and grey at their roots. The eye is brown, the beak black, and the foot yellowish red. This species is from thirteen to fourteen inches long, and twenty broad. The wing measures five inches and three-quarters, and the tail three inches and a half.

Jerdon informs us "that the Black Partridge is found throughout the whole of Northern India, from the Himalayas to the valley of the Ganges, and southwards to Sindh and Guzerat, eastwards through Dacca to Assam, Sylhet, and Tipperah, and on mountains 4,000 feet above the level of the sea." It frequents by preference grass meadows near water, cultivated fields of corn, mustard, or pulse, and any patch of moderately high green herbage, also low jungle, and is not unfrequently flushed in moderately long grass interspersed with bushes, even at some distance from water.

"In the cold weather," says Jerdon, "after the young have flown and separated from their parents, they may be found scattered over a greater expanse of country than during the hot weather and rains, and are often to be found in fields far from water. This Partridge is stated occasionally to perch and roost on trees; but this is certainly a rare habit, at least with this species."

During pairing-time the call of the cock bird may be frequently heard at sunrise, and towards evening. Malesherbes represents it as an agreeable sound, resembling the syllables "Tre-tre-tre."

A Sicilian proverb says that the bird wishes to declare his own value, and that he may be purchased for three coins. This cry has been represented by many different syllables that, however, would scarcely give a correct idea of its sound to those who have not heard it. The Mussulmans say that it repeats the pious words, "Dobhan teri kudrut," others that it calls out, "Lussun, piaz, udruk," or garlic, onions, ginger. Adams represents the cry as "Lohee-wha-which-a-whick," and some one else as "Juk-juk-tee-tar." One writer has compared it to the harsh grating blast of a cracked trumpet; but Jerdon says that it is far from being a loud call, though sufficiently audible for a great distance. This cry is almost always uttered from a slight eminence, such as a bank, ant-hill, or clump of earth, and where the birds are numerous, answering cries may be heard from all sides. These birds generally call much after rain, or after a heavy dew.

The Francolin is not shy, but when it finds itself pursued, runs quickly for two or three minutes, avoiding open ground, before it takes wing; its flight is strong and steady, but slow, and not long continued. When alarmed it usually only rises to the nearest bush, and thence descends again to the ground.

In India, according to Jerdon, the hens brood from May to July. The nest is usually in high grass, sometimes in indigo fields, and occasionally in plantations of sugar-cane. The eggs are ten or twelve, and sometimes even fifteen in number, of a pale blueish white or pale green tint. It is probable that the mother alone broods.

A few years ago many of these birds were shot in Sicily, but now they seem to have almost disappeared from that island. In Syria and Palestine, according to Tristram, "they are found in the rich lowland plains of Gennesaret, Acre, and Phœnicia, concealing themselves in the dense herbage and growing corn, where their singular call can be heard resounding at daybreak from every part of the plain, while not a bird can be seen." In the _Bengal Sporting Magazine_ for 1841, we are told that seventy-five brace were shot by one sportsman in the neighbourhood of Kamal in the Upper Provinces; but it is everywhere more scarce than it was formerly. The flesh of this bird is good, especially when kept for a few days, and eaten cold. The beautiful spotted feathers of the lower plumage were used in some parts of the country to make into capes, but are now scarcely procurable.

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The BARE-NECKED PHEASANTS (_Pternistes_) constitute a group of African Francolins, recognisable by their comparatively slender body, moderately long neck, and small head. The wing (in which the fourth quill exceeds the rest in length) is much rounded, the tail, over which the pinions do not extend, is almost straight at its extremity. The beak is of medium size, the foot high, and armed with a spur.

THE RED-NECKED PHEASANTS.

The RED-NECKED PHEASANTS (_Pternistes rubricollis_) are principally of a pale greyish brown, almost all the feathers, except those on the head, being decorated with a triangular yellowish white spot, and edged with white. The primary quills are black, bordered with yellow on the outer, and spotted with the same shade on the inner web; the tail-feathers are irregularly striped with yellow and brown. The eye is light brown, the bare circle that surrounds it cinnabar-red; a patch upon the throat is yellow, edged and spotted with black; the beak deep brownish grey, with red base and nostrils; the foot dark brownish grey. The male is sixteen inches long and twenty-five broad; his wing measures seven inches and two-thirds, and the tail four inches; the female is an inch and a half shorter and one inch narrower than her mate.

As far as has been at present ascertained, the habitat of this species extends over all the low-lying country near the African coast, from the northern boundary of Abyssinia to Somali; we have never seen it upon mountains, although it occasionally frequents their immediate vicinity. The Red-necked Pheasant, like other Francolins, is extremely shy, and if disturbed runs with great quickness to a place of security, and only when very hard pressed employs its wings. Its flight is noisy but light, and resembles that of the _Lyrurus tetrix;_ upon the ground, however, it is far more at home than in the air, running over its surface with almost incredible ease and rapidity. Like its congeners, this species has but one mate, and lives on excellent terms with its companions, as several pairs and their young usually keep together, forming small parties. In spite of this usually peaceful mode of life, the males, like the rest of their kind, occasionally indulge in regular pitched battles. Their cry is very similar to that of the Partridge; about April or May the males become much excited, and may be heard calling almost incessantly during the evening hours. A nest found by Brehm in a thick, dark bush near the ground, was formed of leaves and feathers, and contained within its deep walls, six pure white eggs, closely resembling those of a Domestic Fowl. "My attention," he tells us, "was attracted to the nest in the first instance by the movements of the hen, who ran out of the bush at my approach, and placing herself in an open space near me, spread and beat her wings, and by her cries endeavoured to lure me from the spot. I carefully marked the bush that contained the brood and at once pretended to follow the anxious mother, who, after leading me some five hundred paces, suddenly rose and flew back to her home in a series of large curves quite after the manner of the rest of her congeners. The cock was not to be seen, but no doubt was in the immediate vicinity." The flesh of this species is much esteemed, and large numbers are snared for the table. In many European houses it is to be seen caged, yet, though it endures captivity well, it never becomes really tame.

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The AMERICAN PARTRIDGES (_Odontophori_) are delicately-framed birds, possessing a short high beak, compressed at its sides, high, much arched, and furnished at its margin with two strong, tooth-like projections. The moderately long tail is composed of twelve feathers, the external of which are frequently much shortened; the fourth, fifth, and sixth quills of the very decidedly-rounded wings exceed the rest in length; the tarsi are high, without a spur, but the toes are long and furnished with long, sharp claws. The thick plumage is more or less brilliantly coloured and always beautifully marked; some species have a bare patch around the eye. All the members of this group are strictly American, and by far the greater number of them are natives of that portion of the continent lying between 30° north latitude and the equator. Four species are now included in the fauna of North America, and four have been discovered in Brazil; some few extend their range to the larger of the West Indian Islands, and several others inhabit the vast mountain ranges of the Andes.

The American Partridges form a large and well-defined group, distinguishable from the Partridges and Quails of the Old World by the absence of any spur, or spur-like appendage on the tarsi, and by the tooth-like processes in the upper mandible. They are pugnacious in their disposition, seem arboreal in their habits, and deposit their eggs in a depression of the ground or in a very inartificial nest. Their food consists of seeds, berries, fruits, and the tender leaves of grass and other vegetables. Their flesh is white, tender, and well flavoured. In the morning and evening twilight they perch on a low branch near each other, when the males frequently give utterance to their cries, which reverberate through the forest to a great distance. If alarmed when on the ground, they usually hasten to some neighbouring branch, along which they run, and crouching down conceal themselves amongst the foliage.

The female lays from eight to fifteen eggs.

THE CAPUEIRA PARTRIDGE.

The CAPUEIRA PARTRIDGE (_Odontophorus dentatus_), the largest species of the entire family, represents a group of powerfully-built birds, with comparatively long necks and moderate-sized heads, their short tail, rounded at its extremity, is formed of soft feathers; the short, decidedly-rounded wing has its fifth and sixth quills longer than the rest; the strong, hooked beak is compressed at its sides, and has the high upper mandible much vaulted; the margins of the lower mandible are furnished with two well-defined tooth-like appendages. The tarsi are high, the toes long, armed with sharply-pointed hooked claws, and protected by large horny scales. The plumage, which is alike in the two sexes, is prolonged into a crest on the head; the eye is surrounded by a broad, brightly-coloured skin. This species is yellowish brown on the nape, back, wings, and tail; the crown of the head is brown, and a cheek-stripe that extends to the nape is reddish yellow, dotted with a lighter shade: the feathers on the throat and upper portion of the back are spotted with brown and black, and striped with yellow; those on the shoulders have a large black triangular patch on the inner web. The feathers of the wing-covers have a pale, yellow, heart-shaped spot at their tip, whilst the lower shoulder-feathers and exterior secondaries are edged with reddish yellow on the inner web, and streaked with black, the centre part of each being also varied with reddish grey and brown. The brown primary quills have the outer web dotted with white, and the shaft grey; the secondaries are marked with reddish yellow on the outer web. All the feathers on the hinder parts of the body and tail are of mottled reddish yellow in the centre, with a pale yellow border, and a black spot at the tip; those on the under side are slate-grey, edged with brown. The eye is brown, the bare ring that surrounds it deep flesh-red, the beak black, and the foot greyish red. The female is of paler hue, and the young show more reddish brown in their plumage than the adult male. The length of the body is sixteen inches and a half, the wing measures three inches and a half, and the tail three inches.

This bird is found in suitable localities in most parts of Brazil, from the Rio de la Plata to the Amazon. We are indebted to the Prince of Wied for what we know of its life and habits.

"This species," says the prince, "is called 'Capueira' by the Brazilians. Its habits and mode of life are very similar to those of the Hazel Grouse, or Gelinotte (_Bonasia sylvestris_). It never frequents the open country, but confines itself entirely to the thick woods. In the early part of the year the 'Capueira' lives in pairs, and after the breeding season the families remain in coveys of from ten to sixteen or more in number. These birds run very quickly, and procure their food among the dry leaves on the ground in the midst of the extensive woods. The stomachs of such as I examined contained fruits, berries, insects, small stones, and a little sand. The part of the country in which I met with them is the eastern portion of Southern Brazil, from Rio de Janeiro to 13° south latitude; by Spix they appear to have been found still farther north. In the vast forests bordering the rivers Mucuri, Alcobaça, Belmonte, and Ilheo they were very common, and we frequently killed them for the sake of their flesh, which is excellent. Their loud and remarkable voice is heard only in the forests, where it reverberates to a great distance. Azara states that the cry is uttered by both sexes, but I believe it is emitted by the male bird only. Like the Domestic Cock in Europe, it frequently aroused us at the break of day, bidding us, as it were, continue our researches among the grand but almost impenetrable forests of that magnificent country. They commenced calling before daybreak, thus affording us ample time for breakfasting, and enabling us to start by the dawn of the young day."

Azara tells us that the voice of the Capueira consists of two notes; but on this point he is incorrect, as it comprises three or four notes, which are frequently and very quickly repeated. Morning and evening the Capueiras perch on a branch in a line, very near to each other, and at this time the male birds frequently give utterance to their cry, which Azara states to resemble the word "uru," but it appeared to me very different. The nest found by me in the woods near the fine lake called Lagoa d'Arara (Macaw Lake) was placed on the ground, and contained from ten to fifteen pure white eggs, which coincides with Sonnini's account; while Azara's assertion that they are of a violet-blue is doubtless a mistake, which may probably have arisen, as M. Temminck suggests, from his having mistaken the eggs of a Tinamou for those of a Capueira. Some travellers have asserted that they have found the nests of this bird on trees, and that they were placed in such situations in order that they might be secure from the attacks of snakes and other enemies; but this is also a mistake, for were such a precaution necessary, it would be adopted by all the birds in the country, whereas numerous species, especially the Tinamous, constantly breed on the ground. The sport afforded by the Capueira very closely resembles that afforded by the Hazel Grouse. When a covey was disturbed by the pointers they flew to the trees, the motion of their wings causing the same rustling sound as those of the Partridge. Occasionally they might be killed very easily; at other times it was very difficult to sight them among the dense foliage of the woods. Their flesh, which is very palatable, forms an excellent article for the table.

THE VIRGINIAN OR AMERICAN PARTRIDGE.

The VIRGINIAN or AMERICAN PARTRIDGE (_Ortyx Virginianus_) represents a group distinguishable by the following characteristics:--Their body is short and powerful, with the neck and head of medium size; the beak is strong, short, much vaulted, and has the lower mandible incised, the upper mandible terminates in a hook, while the margin of the lower portion near its apex presents two or three distinct notches. The moderate-sized and arched wing has the fourth quill longer than the rest; the rounded tail is composed of twelve feathers, and the foot is protected by rows of smooth, horny plates in front, and covered with small scales at the back and sides. The plumage is glossy, and prolonged into a crest on the head. In the male all the feathers of the mantle are reddish brown, spotted and lined with black and edged with yellow; those on the under side are whitish yellow, striped with reddish brown and marked with black. Two bands, the one white, the other black, pass across the brow; the white throat is separated from the sides of the neck--which is mottled with black, brown, and white, by a black line. The upper wing-covers are principally reddish brown; the dark brown primary quills are bordered with blue on the outer web; the secondaries are irregularly striped with brownish yellow; the centre tail-feathers are greyish yellow, dotted with black; the rest are greyish blue. The eye is reddish, the beak dark brown, and the foot greyish blue. The female has more yellow on the brow and neck, and the rest of her plumage is less clearly marked than that of her mate; the young resemble the mother. This species is nine inches long, and thirteen inches and five-sixths broad; the wing measures four inches and a half, and the tail two inches and a quarter.

Canada forms the northern, the Rocky Mountains the western, and the Gulf of Mexico the southern limit of the range of these birds. They have been introduced into the island of Jamaica, where they thrive, breeding in that warm climate twice in the year. In the southern part of the United States they are stationary, but in the north they make yearly expeditions, which resemble migrations. They are principally met with in open fields, or about fences sheltered by bushes or briars, and they sometimes visit the woods, but are rarely found in the depths of the forest. In their general demeanour they very much resemble our own Partridge. They run nimbly and fly swiftly, making a loud whirring sound with their wings. When chased by dogs they take refuge in the trees, where they remain until danger is past, walking with ease on the branches. Their usual cry is a clear whistle. The love-call of the male consists of three clear notes, the two last being the loudest, and resembling the syllables, "Ah! Bob White!"

"The male," says Audubon, "is seen perched on a fence, stake, or on the low branch of a tree, standing nearly in the same position for hours together, and calling, 'Ah! Bob White,' at every interval of a few minutes. Should he hear the note of a female, he sails directly towards the spot whence it proceeded. Several males may be heard from the different parts of a field, challenging each other, and should they meet on the ground they fight with great courage and obstinacy until the conqueror drives off his antagonist to another field." About the beginning of May the female proceeds to build her nest; this is placed on the ground, close to a tuft of grass, and partly sunk in the earth: it is formed of leaves and fine dry grass, is of a circular form, and covered above, with an opening at the side. The eggs are of a pure white, and rather sharp at the smaller end. Both parents assist in hatching the eggs. When the young are freed from the shell they leave the nest, and are led in search of food by their mother, who shelters them with most assiduous care. If danger threatens, she throws herself across the path of the intruder, beating the ground with her wings as if severely wounded, and uttering notes of alarm to decoy the stranger into pursuit of herself, and give warning to her young to conceal themselves in the high grass till the danger is past, when, having allured her pursuer to a distance, she returns, and leads them safe home. The American Partridge usually rears only one brood in the year, but should this be destroyed she immediately prepares another nest, and even should mischance befall this also, a third batch of eggs is laid. This Partridge has been occasionally employed to hatch the eggs of the Domestic Hen.

"A friend of mine," says Wilson, "informs me, that of several hens' eggs, which he substituted for those of the Partridge, she brought out the whole; and that for several weeks he occasionally surprised her in various parts of the plantations, with her broods of chickens, on which occasions she exhibited much alarm, and practised her usual manœuvres for their preservation. Even after they were considerably grown and larger than the Partridge herself; she continued to lead them about; but though their notes or call were those of common chickens, their manners had all the shyness, timidity, and alarm of young Partridges: they ran with great rapidity, and squatted in the grass exactly after the manner of the Partridge. Soon after this they disappeared, having probably been destroyed."

In summer the food of these birds consists of insects, berries, and grain, and in the autumn they revel in the fields of buckwheat and Indian corn. When winter comes, and their supplies have disappeared, those in the northern districts commence their southward course, and many perish during these journeys. Early in October the shores of the large rivers are covered with flocks of them, which rove along the margin of the river and cross towards evening, the weaker ones often falling and perishing in the water. After the principal streams have been thus crossed, the flocks distribute themselves about the country, and resume their usual mode of life. During the severity of winter they often suffer from scarcity of food, and will then approach the dwellings of men, and become half domesticated, visiting the barns and mixing with the poultry, to share their food. The eggs of this species have frequently been hatched by the Domestic Hen; two of these birds that had been brought up in this manner, according to Wilson, associated with the cows, followed them to the fields, returned with them in the evening, stood by them while milked, and again returned with them to pasture. These remained during winter, lodging in the stable, but as soon as spring came they disappeared.