The genus Syrrhaptes, though in general appearance resembling Pterocles, has a conformation of foot quite unique among birds, the three anterior toes being encased in a common “podotheca,” which is clothed to the claws with hairy feathers, so as to look much like a fingerless glove. The hind toe is wanting. The two species of Syrrhaptes are S. tibetanus— the largest Sand-Grouse known— inhabiting the country whence its trivial name is derived, and S. paradoxus, ranging from Northern China across Central Asia to the confines of Europe, which it occa sionally, and in a marvellous manner, invades, as has been already briefly described (Birds, vol. iii. p. 770). Though its attempts at colonization in the extreme west have failed, it would seem to have established itself of late years in the neighbourhood of Astrakhan (Ibis, 1882, p. 220). It appears to be the “Barguerlac ” of Marco Polo (ed. Yule, i. p. 239); and the “Loung-Kio” or “Dragon’s Foot,” so unscientifically described by the Abbé Huc (Souvenirs d’un Voyage dans la Tartarie, i. p. 244), can scarcely be anything else than this bird.

Externally all Sand-Grouse present an appearance so distinctive that nobody who has seen one of them can be in doubt as to any of the rest. Their plumage assimilates in general colour to that of the ground they frequent, being above of a dull ochreous hue, more or less barred or mottled by darker shades, while beneath it is frequently varied by belts of deep brown intensifying into black. Lighter tints are, however, exhibited by some species,—the drab merging into a pale grey, the buff brightening into a lively orange, and streaks or edgings of an almost pure white relieve the prevailing sandy or fawn-coloured hues that especially characterize the group. The sexes seem always to differ in plumage, that of the male being the brightest and most diversified. The expression is decidedly Dove-like, and so is the form of the body, the long wings contributing also to that effect, so that among Anglo-Indians these birds are commonly known as “Rock-Pigeons.” The long wings, the outermost primary of which in Syrrhaptes has its shaft produced into an attenuated filament, are in all the species worked by exceedingly powerful muscles, and in several forms the middle rectrices are likewise protracted and pointed, so as to give to their wearers the name of Pin-tailed Sand-Grouse. The nest is a shallow hole in the sand. Three seems to be the regular complement of eggs laid in each nest, but there are writers who declare (most likely in error) that the full number in some species is four. These eggs are of peculiar shape, being almost cylindrical in the middle and nearly alike at each end, and are of a pale earthy colour, spotted, blotched, or marbled with darker shades, the markings being of two kinds, one superficial and the other more deeply seated in the shell. The young are hatched fully clothed in down (P. Z. S. 1866, pl. ix. fig. 2), and though not very active would appear to be capable of locomotion soon after birth. Morphologically generalized as the Sand-Grouse undoubtedly are, no one can contest the extreme specialization of many of their features, and thus they form one of the most instructive groups of birds with which ornithologists are acquainted. The remains of an extinct species of Pterocles, P. sepultus, intermediate apparently between P. alchata and P. gutturalis, have been recognized in the Miocene caves of the Allier by Prof. A. Milne-Edwards (Ois . foss. de la France, p. 294, pl. clxi. figs. 1-9); and, in addition to the other authorities on this very interesting group of birds already cited, reference may be made to Mr Elliot’s “Study” of the Family (P. Z. S., 1878, pp. 233-264) and Dr Gadow, “On certain points in the Anatomy of Pterocles” (op. dt., 1882, pp. 312-332). (A. N. )