The Cambridge natural history, Vol. 09 (of 10)Evans, A. H. (Arthur Humble)
Science
The Cambridge natural history, Vol. 09 (of 10)
Evans, A. H. (Arthur Humble)
Animals; Birds
javanica_ of Java has the head rufous with brownish crown, a black band
surrounding the eyes and crossing the occiput, another encircling the base
of the neck, joined to the former by a black line down the rust-coloured
nape, and a third running from the throat to the sides of the neck. The
upper parts are dark grey barred with black, the wings exhibiting chestnut
and olive tints; the chest is grey; the remaining lower parts are chestnut.
_A. chloropus_ of Lower Burma and Cochin China has the crown and nape
brown, the superciliary stripe, throat, and lores black and white, the
fore-neck buff with black spots and margin, the upper parts and chest brown
and black with rufous on the wings and rump-region, the breast red, the
abdomen, sides, and black-barred flanks buff. In this genus the orbital and
even the gular skin is crimson or purplish, the feet are commonly red, the
bill rarely so. The various species form coveys, which frequent grassy
hill-jungles and wooded ravines up to more than ten thousand feet; they are
usually unsuspicious, and run before an intruder, but occasionally perch in
trees, and fly rapidly when forced to rise; the single whistling note is
loud but mellow; the food consists of leaves, roots, berries, seeds, grubs,
and molluscs; the four white eggs, {223}sometimes speckled with grey, are
deposited with little or no nest, at the foot of a tree, or under a tussock
among thin scrub.
_Microperdix_ and _Perdicula_, the Bush Quails of Anglo-Indians, have a
blunt tubercle on each foot in the male. _M. erythrorhyncha_ of South and
West India has the crown and cheeks black; a white frontal band continued
down the sides of the head; brown upper parts, with round buff
black-centred spots on the back, and black and buff markings on the wings
and tail; a white throat bordered by black; and a grey-brown chest and
rufous breast, with black spots on the former and the flanks. The bill and
feet are red. In the female the crown is brown, the throat and cheeks being
rufous. _M. blewitti_ of Central India is only slightly different; but _M.
manipurensis_ of Manipur has a chestnut throat, becoming grey in the hen.
These active Quail-like little birds haunt the lower mountain-thickets up
to perhaps eight thousand feet, forming small coveys, feeding on seeds and
insects, and fashioning a slight nest under some sort of cover, to contain
from ten to fourteen pointed creamy-brown eggs. _Perdicula asiatica_ of
India and Ceylon is brown above, with wavy black dorsal barring, and black
and buff markings on the wings and tail; the superciliary stripes and
throat are chestnut with whitish margins; the under parts white with black
bars; the feet red. The female is uniform buff below. _P. argoondah_ of
India has dull brick-red in place of the chestnut, and a whitish throat in
the hen. It has been introduced into Mauritius. The habits are much as in
_Microperdix_, but the nest is sometimes more elaborate, and the
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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