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Trastos

Matador's tools (sword and small cape).

Vaca. A cow.

Vaquero. A herdsman.

Viaje. A movement or course taken by bull in the ring.

BURREL -The Burrel, Burrell, Burhel, Bharal, or Blue wild sheep. Ovis nayœur, Hodgson, Asiatic Rev. XVIII., pt. ii., p. 135 (1833); Ovis nahoor, Hodgson, P.Z.S. 1833; Sclater, P.Z.S. 1860; Ovis nahura, Blyth, Cat., p. 178; Jordan, Mam., p. 296; Ovis burhel, Bluth, P.Z.S. 1840, p. 67.

Native Names. -Na, Sua; Ladak. Wa, War; Sutlej valley. Nirvati; Nepaul.

Nao, Gnau; Bhotan.

Measurements. - Height of full-grown male, 30 to 36 inches, being considerably 3 BURREL.

Jemillais Height at shoulder, 36 in. Av. horn meas. 22 in.; max. horn meas. 32 in. shorter than Ovis ammon, and of a stouter and less graceful build.

Horns, &c.- Average length, 22 to 24 inches; girth at base, II inches. Hodgson records a pair of 32 inches: P.Z.S. 1840, p. 66. The horns are moderately smooth, with a few wrinkles, and are of a peculiar shape. They are set on the head close together and spring at first outwards in a rounded arch from the head; the points then curl backwards, outwards, and upwards in a manner unlike any other head unless it be that of the Caucasian burrel or the Pyrenean Ibex. The head is somewhat coarse and distinctly sheep-like. No mane or ruff. Ears short, No sub-orbital glands or lachrymal fossæ; but feet pits are present in all four feet. or Colour. Brownish-grey in summer: slate-grey in winter. The lower parts, inside of limbs, and buttocks, white. The male has black face and chest; a black stripe down the front of the limbs and along the side of the body. The female is much smaller and insignificant in colour, with rudimentary horns.

Distribution and Habitat. - The Burrel, from a sporting point of view, is an example of the blessings of mediocrity. He has an enormous range. He inhabits practically the whole of the higher portion of the main Himalayan range, from Shigar in Baltistan to Sikkim and Bhatan, together with an indefinite range of country to the North as far as the Yarkund country, the Kuenlan, and the Altyn Tagh (Prejwalski). Much of this country is open to the sportsman; [BURREL the Burrel is not a very difficult animal to find if patience be exercised; nor is he, as a rule, on ground which presents very great difficulties to an experienced stalker. On the other hand, his head, though handsome, is not a very striking trophy, and as he usually dwells within ken of Ovis ammon or Ibex, the average sportsman does not devote the whole of his time and energies to stalking Burrel, but generally hopes to obtain a head or two on his way to or from the home of superior game. At the same time, Burrel show very pretty sport. They live upon the highest ground, being seldom found in summer lower than 10,000 feet.

Much of the best ground is above 17,000 feet. The pursuit of Burrel, therefore, requires sound heart and lungs, besides mere leg power. At times, owing to the colour of the base rock on which they are lying, and to the indescribable "mirage" of a Ladak summer's day, they are very difficult to spy. Old-time sportsmen have described them as being not easily alarmed. Wilson and Kinloch both relate instances of most confiding behaviour on the part of Burrel in remote districts. Nowadays, it is safe to say that the Burrel, like all wild sheep, has remarkably acute senses of sight and smell, and takes the fullest advantage of both, as well as of its powers of speed and endurance, in order to secure its own safety.

Shooting. Like other wild sheep, too, it is very tough to kill, and requires to be hit in the right place. A good Balti dog may be a useful addition to the party. Ward in his excellent Guide to Kashmir and Ladak mentions a case in which a Balti dog cornered a wounded Burrel under a rock and lay out all night watching it, till the sportsman returned with the daylight to put in a finishing shot. This happened in 1881, and a few years later the story was confirmed to the present writer by the owner of the dog.

In some aspects the Burrel is allied to the goats as well as to the sheep. Hodgson at one time classed him as a Pseudovis. His horns have a peculiar twist which suggests the goat, and have a strong resemblance to the Caucasian Burrel (Capra pallasi), and also to the Pyrenean Ibex.

On the other hand, he has no beard and no caprine smell. Indeed, one of the best points about the Burrel is his mutton, which is excellent. Unless it be his congener, the Big-horn of the Rocky Mountains, few animals can supply a better joint than the saddle of a fat Burrel ram, not too young, killed in September or October.

S. H. WHITBREAD.

BUSTARD] BUSH PIG (Potamochœrus africanus). ¹ bush pig, all allied to the South African In -The Bosch Vark of the Boers, sometimes called the Southern River Hog, is found in various regions of Southern Africa, usually in the neighbourhood of thick bush and forest. It seldom wanders far from water, and is, therefore, not known in many parts of the dry interior of South Africa.

In the bushy parts of the midland and eastern provinces of Cape Colony, and in Natal, Zululand, the Eastern Transvaal, and the jungly regions of South-eastern Africa, it is not uncommon. It is found sparingly in Matabeleland and Mashonaland. height, the bush pig stands about 2 feet 4 inches or 5 inches. Its extreme length, from snout to tail-tip, is rather more than 5 feet. The general colour is reddishbrown, mingled with grey. The body carries a great deal of coarse hair, especially upon the back and neck. The ears are long and strongly tufted with bristles. The tail, which is about a foot in length, is also strongly tufted. The tushes resemble those of the wild boar of Europe. The canine teeth are all strong and pronounced. Upon the chaffron is a remarkable bony excrescence. The bush pig is, from its extremely shy habits and the difficult nature of the jungles in which it secludes itself, not often bagged by the white sportsman. It is, however, occasionally shot in the periodical drives for small antelope organised in the bush-veldt country of South and South- Taldwell BUSH PIG.

Height at shoulder, 28 in. Length 60 in.

East Africa. The flesh is fairly good. The Red River Hog of West Africa is a near ally, and, although much more brightly coloured, strongly resembles this wild boar in appearance and habits. Other species of form, are found in various parts of the continent.

H. A. BRYDEN.

BUSTARD. --Thirty species of Bustard, separated into twelve genera or imaginary groups, have been described; we are content [Photo. by W. S. Berridge, F.Z.S GREAT BUSTARD. to omit these perplexing names and refer them all to the typical genus Otis. (The numerals given below after the specific names represent the average length in inches of the males, and serve to show the proportionate size of each species.) In most the males are much larger than the females, but this is reversed in the Floricans, the females being the larger. Of the thirty different Bustards, two, the Great Bustard, O. tarda, 42, and the Little Bustard, O. tetrax, 17, are resident in Europe, Central Asia, Persia, and North Africa.

Five are Asiatic, and four of these, O. edwardsi, 50, the Bengal Florican, O. bengalensis, 25, the Lesser Florican, O. aurita, 19, and the Eastern Ruffed Bustard or Houbara, O. macqueeni, 28, are resident in India, the last-named, occasionally wandering to Europe, has been obtained in England. One Bustard, O. australis, 48, very similar to the Indian O. edwardsi, is peculiar to Australia, and known to Colonials as the Wild Turkey.

Twenty-two species are resident in Africa, one of which, the Western Ruffed Bustard or Houbara, O. undulata, 28, occasionally wanders to S. Europe, and is found in the Canary Islands; twelve of the CC2 others are S. African, including the largest, the Gorri-Paaver of Colonists, O. kori, 50, and the Koorhaan, O. afra, 19.

Bustards are unknown in the American regions. The Great Bustard was formerly [Photo by W. S. Berridge, F.Z.S.

LITTLE BUSTARD. resident in England, the last of the British race being killed in Norfolk in 1838. Since then occasional visitors appear, generally in winter, and several efforts, which have, unfortunately, proved unsuccessful, have been made to naturalise them again. Always frequenting open country, this fine bird is found in great numbers on the vast plains of Andalusia, where sometimes flocks of as many as seventy may be seen. The best, but not, perhaps, the most sporting, way of shooting them is by driving, usually in spring. It is difficult in some parts to find any shelter for the guns. Where there are dry watercourses it is, of course, easy work, and in May the wheat is high enough to squat behind, while in some spots it is necessary to make screens of dead thistles and other rubbish. On suitable ground, the gunner can lie flat near the top of the reverse side of any slight hill over which the birds are to be driven. The chief object is to keep perfectly immovable, for no bird has a keener sight than the Great Bustard, and the faintest movement will send it swerving.

It is usual only to shoot the males; the old ones, sometimes weighing up to 36 lb., are called by the Spaniards, "Barbones,” from the tuft of long bristly white feathers which grow like whiskers on each side of the throat. [BUSTARD These Bustards usually fly very low, within twenty yards of the ground; but, with the wind behind them, much higher.

Considering their size they are easily brought down; No. 4 is quite large enough shot to use, but, wonderful to relate, I have seen good shots clean miss them within twenty yards, perhaps because, from their apparently laborious flight, they seem to fly more slowly than is really the case.

When they do not fall to the shot they always, if mortally wounded, void their excrement.

The The drivers need not be numerous. best driver I knew, one "Perico," or Pedro Molina, of Algaba, a village on the Guadalquivir, a few miles above Seville, never used more than two men to assist him as flankers in driving, but his knowledge of the country and consequent judgment of the course the birds would probably take were wonderful. The late Lord Lilford (Birds of Northamptonshire, vol. i., pp. 342-4) gives a graphic account of Perico, under whose guidance both he himself and the writer shot their first Bustard many years ago. Bustards are also shot in the hot months by the Spaniards at drinking places; but they kill most at night in the way adopted for many small ground-roosting birds, viz., with a lantern and bell. With the Bustards, however, a horse and gun are also used, the gunner walking by the side [Photo. by W. S. Berridge, F.Z.S.

MACQUEEN'S BUSTARD. of his horse, while his confederate rings the bell and shows the light, till it shines on the birds, which are then killed, sometimes three or four at a shot.

Another tedious method, a stratagem BUSTARD] practised in almost all countries with Bustards and many other birds, is to approach them with a cart. The most sporting way is stalking them with a rifle, when, if the ground be unfavourable, a shot may occasionally be got by gradually circling round them.

The Little Bustard, a straggler to the British Islands in autumn and winter, is also found in Andalusia and Morocco in great numbers, but is a shy and very difficult bird to circumvent. Though usually frequenting more undulating ground than the Great Bustard, I have always found it useless to attempt to drive them, as when flushed they rise at once, sometimes to such a height that unless seen to rise from the ground it would be hard to recognise them.

They are also very difficult to detect on the ground, though, when flying, the white of the wings is very conspicuous.

The only season in which they can be easily shot is during the great heat of August, when, at midday, they lie well; but the heat is then too much for ordinary mortals.

Occasionally, without any apparent cause, they will, like Golden Plover, fly past within easy reach, and, keeping very close together, offer a good "browning" shot. Even when nesting amongst the well-grown corn, they [Photo. by W. S. Berridge, F.Z.S.

HOUBARA OR RUFFED BUSTARD. are very wary; and I have found it troublesome to obtain specimens. When rising from the ground, they make a loud rattling noise with their wings, whence the Spanish name of "Sison" and the Moorish "Bou-zerat," "father of the armourer"; another Moorish name is Sirt- Sirt, from their peculiar call in the breeding [Photo. by W. S. Berridge, F.Z.S.

AUSTRALIAN BUSTARD. season. Their flesh, unlike that of the Great Bustard, is excellent, almost equal to that of the Bengal Florican, and in Spanish hotels figures on the menu as "faisan."

The larger Bustards, which frequent open ground, are wary and difficult to approach, needing all sorts of stratagems to obtain a shot; but some of the smaller kinds, like the Bengal Florican, which are found in thick grass, lie close and are easy to shoot.

L. H. IRBY.

BUSTARDS, AFRICAN. - Bustards are to be found in many parts of the African continent, but, up to the present, the various species have only been determined with anything like exactness in the countries between the Cape and the Zambesi. Even here, it is probable that one or two new species may yet be established. In South Africa, where at least ten species are at present known, very excellent sport is to be enjoyed with the many bustards to be found almost everywhere throughout the country. The Paauw, or Kori Bustard (Otis kori), is the largest bustard in the world, and attains occasionally a weight of 40 lb. These noble game-birds are usually secured with the rifle. The Stanley Bustard (O. caffra), and Ludwig's Bustard (0. ludwigi), rank next in size to the Paauw.

Following these come the smaller Bustards, usually known to the colonists as "Koorhaans," many of which are extremely plentiful all over the country-especially upon the open plains-and afford capital sport for the shot gun. The Black Koorhaan (O.afra), Black and White Koorhaan (O. afroides), Vaal (grey) Koorhaan (O. scolopacea), the Bush Koorhaan (O. ruficrista), the beautiful Blue Koorhaan (O. cærulescens), the Senegal Bustard (O. senegalensis), Rüppel's Bustard (O. ruppeli), and the Black-bellied Koorhaan (O. melanogaster), are all handsome and extremely interesting birds known to the South African sportsman. The great Kori Bustard (Paa ( Paauw) is a magnificent table bird, and most of the others afford excellent eating as well as good sport. The gunner may identify these birds by reference to Layard and Sharpe's Birds of South Africa.

H. A. BRYDEN.

BUTTERFLY AND MOTH COL- LECTING. - That butterfly and moth hunting is a sport, no one will deny who has ever chased a strong flying fritillary over rough country, or tried to snare over the treacle a restive rarity that refuses to become intoxicated. We therefore give a few practical hints for its successful pursuit.

Capture, Apparatus, &c. -To obtain the perfect insect in its wild state is the finest side of the sport, and the demand is not so much for elaborate apparatus as for activity_and energy on the part of the pursuer. For the apparatus, a folding net, of the largest size possible, the ring fitting in a Y socket, is advised, and a broken golf club makes an admirable stick. For killing purposes one may use a bottle or tin, the latter having the advantage that, if the lid is hinged, one hand can do the work of slipping in the insect. The poison may be potassium cyanide contained in a solid basis of plaster of Paris, or chloroform dropped on cotton-wool. Chloroform tends to stiffen the insects, but is quicker in action. The great objection is that one may at any moment find the stock exhausted, and the bottle empty, when far from all chance of obtaining the drug. In any case let the bottle or tin be filled with very loosely packed cotton-wool, to prevent insects rubbing on one another. Many collectors reject, for moths, anything but a pill-box, in which the captured insect can be taken home, and from which it can be killed at leisure. The great advantage is that many rare ova can be obtained from the females in this way. On the other hand, an excited [BUSTARD rarity may batter itself on the way home, and one's pockets become crowded on a successful night. When in pursuit, mark the point of settling, and come up against the sun, so that no shadow may fall and startle the quarry. Almost all butterflies rise perpendicularly; therefore, get the net well above them.

Localities. For butterflies, the best possible place is a rough open common near a wood, and, if possible, surrounded by woods. These should be worked thoroughly as should the ridings of the woods themselves. For those who can spare the time, a week or more in the New Forest is bound to yield much sport in all the entomological branches. Clover fields should be watched, and the hedges around them carefully beaten, for many moths lie there during the daytime. Disused quarries and railway cuttings are also found attractive. The Hawk Moths are generally bred, but they may be caught with net and light about two hours after dusk, as they come to feed on such flowering shrubs as rhododendron, ivy, &c. A sharp look-out should be kept, during the months in which they come from their pupæ, upon fences, tree-trunks, &c., near their favourite food-plant. In the daytime, once seen, they are secured without difficulty. Geometers may be obtained in the daytime by beating hedges and skirts of woods, or by walking over rough ground.

It is advisable to try to catch them on the wing as they rise, for, when they get to cover, they are extremely hard to find.

They start of their own accord to fly by hedgerows, in gardens, and in the ridings of woods just after sunset, when for an hour and a half the net may be used with success. The usual method for the capture of Noctua is Treacling.

Time.-Moths may be captured all through the year, some few appearing only in the winter, but the season for butterflies rarely lasts for longer than from the middle or end of April to the end or middle of September. The best time of day is from about nine till eleven, and from one till three. At midsummer, a hunt before breakfast is sometimes well rewarded by a large capture of some of the rarer flies.