researches of Professor W. K. Parker (Trans. Z. Soc., vol. v.)
and Professor Huxley (P. Z. S., 1868, p. 803), J t seems,
however, necessary to place them in a distinct order Herrti-
podii, which leads off towards the Crypturi, or Tinamous, of
South America. One very remarkable feature is that throughout
the genus the females are considerably larger than the
males. They live mostly in localities covered with scrub, in
which they skulk ; hiding themselve's at the least appearance
of danger; seldom taking wing, but running with.great
speed; and as a rule they are not migratory. -
Of the Andalusian Hemipode it may be said that even in
the countries it inhabits, lit' is extremely local, and has
never been proved" to wander to any extent. iri.Europe it
occurs in the Alemtejo in the south of Portugal, and along
the southern' coasts of Spain, especially where the ground
is covered with palmetto-scrub {Ghammrops humilis); as in
the neighbourhood of Gibraltar, and of Algesiras in , the
direction of Vejer, and also about Malaga where the country
is of a similar character. It is not again met .with in
Europe until Sicily is -reached, when it, is found in tfon-
siderable abundance | along the south-„western side.; of that
island, very seldom straggling even se-far. as "the vicinity
of Palermo-: -neyer migrating, n®iv being known to
either Malfia pnJhjBr.qn§- side, or the* mainland of Italy on
the other. It does not occur on any-other island-v of^the
Mediterranean, nor lhas -it^been proved to have straggled
even ti/the southern shores of France/ In N^fjth'Africa it
is found in suitable localities:' -in^MorpqgjQ from -Mogador
to Tangiers, and thence through Algeria, Tunis, and'Tripoli
as far as the confines of Egypt, beyond which .ijt ^annot
she traced with certainty^ , It is in fact restricted, to ^certain
localities'of a. peculiar physical .character in ^Southern
Europe -and Noriheth Africa; and "few-,birds wonld^bp d$ss
likely to have voluntarily visited the British Islands. In
India and’ Geyfen? this speciesI is. /irnpresfepted; fty^^irnix
f^jpoor, the ‘Bush Quail’of sportsmen, and o^ermenihef|of
the genus are found throughout the "‘Ethfopiam and Oriental
regions down to Australia,-whefre they are especially-'.numerous.
The evidence upon which the Andalusian Hemipode has
been included amongst British Birds is- contained in the
following letter, published in'the ‘Annals of Natural History,-’
xiv. p. 459, and addressed to the editors .
“ Gentlemen,—I harve recently received a bird which
appears "to me to be new to -this', country ; it is a Quail,
having no back toe, and is not mentioned, I believe, in any
work on British'Ornithology to which' I have access; but
in Dri Latham’s, Général History - it ,is describëdhis the
Perdix .OibraMecrica, with which my specimen -appears tö
agree. The bird was shot by the' gamekeeper on the Corn-
well estate in this:county, about three miles from hence, and
has been kindly "présented to mé.’ ' It was found .-in a field
of barley, of which kind -of grain, by the bye,- hundreds of
acres are still standing, with no prospect'of being harvested
in a proper state. ..Before'I proceeded'to -preserve, the bird,
I took the measure-of/its various parts, the colour of its
eyes, bill, and feet, its weight,; &c., after which' I found ■ its
description, in the ’work before a l l u d e d ' - I t was -shot on
thé 29th of' October last? since'which time another has-been
killed.,near thé saine spot'by; the’1 same .person', but Its?-head
was shot off, and otherwise so mutilated as to be unfit for
preservation this.might'probably complete the pair, mine
being a male bird. It bad djpti-ts- gizzard two-or three -husks
of’ barley, - several small- seeds ' similar to charlock, /some
particles oL gravel, and was very fat.&Æt -was consi&erdbly
injured by the shot, but T have set it up in the best manner
L could;-1 and ;cohsideivrit'ra valuable!)addition ‘to* my* smalj
collection .of■ British Birds.- Should this prove.to1 be .the
only; known- instance?of the Rapture of the' bird- in Britain, I
shalh;-f^b glad.-'èh having^ saved* itrikom /©Miribite- I am-,
Gentlemen-, your •abed’ien.t'-servant,
“ Thos’. -Goatlev.
Qhipging Norfeoji^xon, Nov, 11,j 1844*1%^;
“ [The b ird 'in questionri-S th e Hemipodiw^écMâ^orlius of
Temminck, which is figured-in Mr. Qojuld’s / Birds of Europe,’