. Fancy pheasants and their allies. Pheasants. Tragopans and Monauls. 15 some food for them, and soon retreating under this curious natural umbrella. Another interesting point in the habits of this pretty Pheasant is the display of the cook. Being' anxious to show his mate tliat he has all his eyes about him; so to speak, he displays himself sideways, lifting one wing, and lowering the other, and spreading his tail, which he tilts up on a slant till it is level with the slanted wings, thus giving as good a view as possible. This is the commonest and best known of the Peacock Pheasants, as migh
. Fancy pheasants and their allies. Pheasants. Tragopans and Monauls. 15 some food for them, and soon retreating under this curious natural umbrella. Another interesting point in the habits of this pretty Pheasant is the display of the cook. Being' anxious to show his mate tliat he has all his eyes about him; so to speak, he displays himself sideways, lifting one wing, and lowering the other, and spreading his tail, which he tilts up on a slant till it is level with the slanted wings, thus giving as good a view as possible. This is the commonest and best known of the Peacock Pheasants, as might be expected from its Indian habitat, but the London Zoo has possessed two other species, both. Amherst P/ieasaixTs. surpassing the present in beauty, handsorne though it is. These are : Germain's Peacock-Pheasant (Polyplectron germaini), which has a darker head and red skin round the eye, while in the hen the eye spots are much better developed than in that of the common bird; and the Malayan Peacook-Pheasant(Po/«/p/e(;fro» bicalcaratum), whioli has the ground-colour of tlie plumage buflf thickly speckled with black, a red face, and the crest of the male tipped with purplish gi-een. This species, as its name implies, comes from the Malayan Peninsula; Germain's from Cochin Cliina. The Peacock-Pheasants certainly deserve to be better known. Their beauty, in the combination of bright spots with a soberly-coloured ground, is quite peculiar to them, and as they are the smallest of tne Pheasants they are peculiarly suitable for aviaries. The other species are even more brilliant than those I have mentioned, and I hope that before long we shall have opportunities of seeing these alive, but they seem very scarce at present, even as museum specimens. CHAPTEE IV. TRAGOPANS AND MONAULS. The Tragopans, often miscalled Argus Pheasants by sportsmen in India, are not really related to the true Argus, but form a very distinct and easily recognisable group. They are as big as a good-sized f
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Keywords: ., bookauthorfinnfran, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookyear1901
