This Was The Best Camping-Ground We Had Had In Cyprus; For The First
Time We Stood Upon Real Turf, Green With Recent Showers, And Firmly
Rooted Upon A Rich Sandy Loam.
A cultivated valley lay a few hundred
yards beyond us, completely walled in by high hills covered with wild
olives, arbutus, and dwarf-cypress, and fronted by the sea.
Some fine
specimens of the broad-headed and shady caroub-trees gave a park-like
appearance to the valley, through which a running stream entered from a
ravine among the hills, and, winding through deep banks covered with
myrtles and oleanders, expended itself upon the shingly beach in the
centre of the bay. This sheltered cove, about 300 yards across the chord
of the arc, formed rather more than a semicircle by the natural
formation of the coast, and was further improved by a long reef of hard
sandstone, which extended from either point like an artificial
breakwater.
At first sight the little bay was a tempting refuge, but upon closer
examination I observed ominous dark patches in the clear water, which
betokened dangerous reefs, and other light green portions that denoted
sandy shallows. The cove is useful for the native small craft, but would
be unsuitable to vessels of more than seven feet draught of water. I had
observed that francolins were more numerous since we had arrived upon
the sandstone formation, and the cock birds were calling in all
directions; the locality was so inviting that we felt inclined to remain
for a few days in such a delightful spot; but the season was too far
advanced for shooting, and I therefore confined myself to killing only
what was absolutely necessary for our food, and I invariably selected
the cock-birds of francolins. I do not think these birds pair like the
partridge, but I believe the cock is polygamous, like the pheasant, as I
generally found that several hens were in his neighbourhood. It is a
beautiful game bird, the male possessing a striking plumage of deep
black and rich brown, with a dark ring round the neck. It is quite a
different variety to the mottle-breasted species that I have met with in
Mauritius, Ceylon, and the double-spur francolin that I have shot in
Africa. It is considerably larger than the common partridge, but not
quite so heavy as the red-legged birds of Cyprus, although when flying
it appears superior. The flesh is white and exceedingly delicate, and it
is to be regretted that so valuable a game bird is not introduced into
England. I generally found the francolin in the low scrub, although I
have often shot it either in the cultivated fields or in the wild
prickly low plants upon the open ground which have been misnamed
heather. The habits of this bird have nothing in common with those of
the red-legged partridge, as it is never found upon the bare rocky
hill-sides, which are the general resort of the latter annoying species,
and although the scrub bush may contain both, there is a marked
difference in their character.
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