C E R I O R N I S M E L A N O C E P H A L A .
perched on the thick “branch of a tree,*: or the trunk o f one which has fallen to the ground, or on a large stone. The call
is similar to the one they utter when disturbed, but3is|much louder, and only one single note at a time—a loud energetic ‘ waa,’
not unlike the bleating of a lost goat, and can be heard for upwards o f a mile. It is uttered a t various intervals, sometimes
at every five or ten minutes for hours together, and' sometimes not more than two o f *three times during the day, and most
probably to invite the females to the spot. When the business o f incubation is over, each brood, with the parent birds, keep
collected together about one spot, and descend towards their winter resorts as the season advances; but tlifeforests are so densely
crowded with long weeds and grass, they are seldom seen till about November, when it has partially decayed and admits of a
view through*the wood. It feeds chiefly on the leaves o f trees and shrubs; of the former the box and oak are the principal
ones; of the latter, ritigall and a shrub something like privet. It also eats roots, flowers, grubs and insects, acorns and seeds,
and berries o f various kinds, but in a small proportion compared with leaves. In confinement ft will eat almost any kind of
grain. Though the most solitary of our Pheasants, and in its native forests perhaps the shyest, it' Asi the most easily reconciled
to confinement; even when caught old they soon lose their timidity, eating readily out of the h a n d ; and little difficulty is
experienced in rearing them. The Jewar roosts in..trees, and in winter* perhaps for warmth, seems to prefer the low evergreens,
with closely interwoven leaves and branches, to the latter and larger which overshadow them.”
I take the following account from Ornithognomon’s contribution “ On the Game-Birds of India,” published in ‘The Field ’ for
1866. He there states that this species “ appears to extend westward from the haunts of the last-described species (that is,
from the western limits of Sikim) to the Afghanistan mountains. In summer it ascends to near the snow-level, frequenting in
scattered parties the gloomy forests of pine that clothe those heights. As winter draws on, these birds descend to lower ridges,
still keeping to thick jungle; and when the. cold is severe, they make their way to. the lower spurs, where they seek shelter link
the dense thickets of the hill-bamboo. Like the Monaul, in common with which they are constantly put up, they are not exactly
gregarious, but scatter themselves through the forests, within hearing but not. within sight of each other. Their migrations from
higher to lower levels, and vice versa, keep regular pace with, the seasons; and the sportsman who has had a year’s experience of.
their movements will always know where to lqpk' for them. In very severe weather, when the earth is quite frozen, or buried
under snow, these birds, according to Jerdon, ‘ find their living on the trees.’
“ The difference of ground in which this horned Pheasant and the Sikim species is found accounts readily for the difference of
habits in tlie birds. In Sikim, where the forests present an almost impenetrable mass of underwood, the horned Pheasant of. those
parts is absolutely invisible, unless met with, unawares on a" pathway. In the N.W. Himalaya, where the woods are lofty* with
open glades and scant underwood, the ‘ Simla Horned Pheasant’ may be readily descried, running about or flying into a tree, in
the thick upper foliage of which it hides. When the sportsman enters a wood where several are feeding, the birds commence
running before him, slipping behind the bushes, and uttering all the time .their deep monotonous cries, which Mountaineer likens
to ‘ waa, waa, waa.’ Some take wing with a heavy flutter, and skim along between the trunks.; others ascend into the loftiest
•trees, where they make their way into the topmost branches* and squat, effectually- concealed amongst the thick foliage. I f again,
disturbed, and especially if shot at, they take to wing finally, bursting as it were through the houghs, and directing their flight
down the slope of the hill, across the valley, into a neighbouring ridge. J n remote parts of thgiL^flB* where these birds are not
often molested, they are easy enough of access; but in the vicinity of our stations, such as Simla, Kamaon,. Almora, &c., where
the woods resound all day long to the popping of guns, the Horned Pheasant is the most wary and unapproachable of birds.”jj§§||
Male.—Top o f head and crest hlack. Back of neck dark red, separated, from the bare skin of the face by a line of black.
Upper parts dark brown, mottled with black, arid a black spot with a white centre near the middle of each feather, close
to the tips. Upper secondaries light brown, thickly mottled with black; a white spot surrounded with black on each, feather,
near the tip ; remainder with broad black bars, without any white spots. Primaries black, with irregular narrow bars of buff.
Upper tail-coverts black a t base, barred with buff; remainder chestnut, with a large, round, white spot on each, near the' tip,
these spots becoming very much larger on the flanks. Tail black; basal portion irregularly barred with deep buff. Bare skin
of face and throat deep blue, covered with short black bair-like feathers. Bill black. Feet and legs deep „red.
Female.-—-Upper part greyish brown, mottled with dark brown, each feather with a central streak of yellowish buff Feathers round
the lower part of the neck with. a rufous tinge. Wings like the back, slightly suffused with rufous and mottled with buff. Primaries
dark brown on inner webs, mottled with rufous on outer ones. Upper tail-coverts greyish, mottled with dark brown. Throat dark
brown, whitish in the centre of the feathers. Entire underparts light grey, mottled with blackish brown. Under tail-coverts grey,,
finely mottled with dark brown, tips white, bordered on the lower part with blackish brown. Tail greyish brown, barred irregularly
and mottled with dark brown; all the feathers, except the centre ones, tipped with black.. Bill dark brown. Feet and legs light
brown.
The Plate represents a male, of the natural size, with reduced figure of the female in the distance.,