OB the eastern side of the island ; and in Ireland two were
seen, and one obtained in 1833» so unusually early in the
year as the 28rd August. Altogether^ between sixty and
seventy have been recorded in the British' Islands.
On the Continent the Little Bustard is only a. straggler
to the Northern, and evèn to many of the Central, districts,
being rare in localities where the Great „Bustard is < not
unfrequent.' In France, however, especially in the district
between Chalons-sur-Marne and Troyes in the province
of Champagne, in the plains of the Nivernais, Berry,,and
in La Vendée, the Little-Bustard has greatly increased In
numbers of late years.:! I t arrives, there in small flocks
about the end of March or beginning of Apr|l, at which
season it is common on migration over a much-larger extent
of country, and takes its departure in September. It Is
abundant fnl those portions of the Spanish Peninsula where
the plains are somewhat broken and undulating rin character.
In Italy it is principally a migrant, but it. is resident in
some parts of Sicily and Sardinia, and to a certain extent ;in
Greece. In the southern part of Bussia, and .on the plains
of the Danube,~hit-?is still resident, although in ■ decreasing
numbers, owing to the spread of cultivation. | Eastwards .it
is found in suitable localities, through Asia Minor and
Northern Persia to Afghanistan and Baluchistan, where it
is said to breed; and thence, crowing; ;the Pamir range,
the North-western Provinces of India* which it visits with
regularity in winter. ■ Beyond, the Tian Shan range it ha's uot
yet been traced. On the southern side?,of the Mediterranean
It i t found intolerable abundance in Morocco, and in. Algeria
north Of,the Sahara, where it is known by the name$A“ ^»h?
do Carthage” ; becoming somewhat rare in ]£o#êr Egypt-.
The male assumes his breeding plumage in April, -<at
which time he ^ së la ^ ' a '^ ô t, generally about three fe%t -in
diameter, near,-or upon which, he passes three or Jour hours
each day. He may be seen with his head and neck thrown
back, wingS somewhat extended.and dropping1, bis tail erect,
pouring forth his peculiar cry’of J ^ ^ ^W ^ pm p in g up Pit
the conclusion of each strain, or ©ah, and striking the ground
in a peculiar manner on his descent.* At this season his
throat is said tó'become dilated. The males fight lor the
of* the females, but instead of uniting in flocks
whilst the latter are incubating, each male is to bë found in
the vicinity of a hen : that is to say; the birds are in pairs,
which looks as if the specier was not polygamous;
The nest is on the ground, among herbage which is sufficiently
high to hide thé bird; the eggs, three to"four, and
rarely five, in number, are of a very glossy -olive-brown,
clouded with darker patches, sometimes zoned with rufous,
and occasionally of a pale greenish ground-ëöïöui.; they
measure about 1*95 by 1*5 in. The first clutch is laid
about the end of May, and a second is frequently produced
in the latter part of July.
The food of this species consists of herbs, grain, and
insects; in a specimen killed at Harwich, the body of which
was examined, the stomach contained parts of leaves of the'
white-1 turnip, lungwort, dandelion, and a few blades of grass.
The flesh had the appearance and flavour of that of. a young
hen^Pheasant. The young-eat insects, slugs, and small
snails, and ëvèn frogs and field-mice-with avidity, and the*
diefeof the adult is by no means exclusively vegetable,!
although necessarily so. in the winter season, at which 'the>
birdsSviêtti-this country. males rise with' a. loud clatter
of wings, but the. females sit remarkably -close. In- the1,
autumn;the birds unite and form large flocks, which afterwards
break up into sffi&llBr'parties.
- The adiièt hnale, when in tire ■ plumage peculiar to -the
breeding-iseason, has the beak brown; the hides göldoil-.
yellow; the top of the-head sandy-brown, mottled with*
black;'. cheeks*-’ ear-.-coverts;* the -'-front and- sides- of-.the - neck*'-
bluish-grey* deepening into a border of black passing to* the*
back of the neckbelow' this a narrow white ring all round,
the? neck, and below this, a broad collar and .gérpef of black,'
followed by a band of white and another of black at .the
bottom of tlfeSreck in front'; shëülders,'back, Scapulars,
j j ^ f h e latter portion of fhe French name Can&petière, is -generally supposed
to refer to this peculiar seasonal note.