Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1888-03-09
BIRD OF TIE STEPPE.
HOW THE BUSTARD is TAKEN BY
RUSSIAN HUNTERS.

INV lnC Duo AhO 10 lAkEN BY
RUSSIAN HUNTERS.
peculiar Habits of n Cunning Member OF
the Ostrich Family-The Strange Disa.
bility Which Renders 1t an Easy Cap.
tive-Help1ess Victims.
The drachwa-as Russians call the bustard
is true bird of the steppe High grounds
have no attractions for it, and so long as the
weather is open it scorns the shelter of reed
and underwood, camping out, like veritable
Dcmad, on the bare steppe, and nesting in
the open, where it can find plenty of grass:
of which, by the way, it can eat enormous
quantities. Towards the middle of Novem-
Der great proportion of the birds migrate
and do not return until the end of March:
but large numbers remain behind and winter
in the more southerly parts of Russia, in the
region stretching from the Dneister and
Dneiper right away to the Don and even the
Ural. Why SO many of the birds should re-
sist the migratory instinct when their fell
lows wing their way to warmer countries, is
a question which ornithologists have yet to
settle
Bustards are not gregarfcus birds. Rarely
are more than ten or twelve of them to be
found in any one locality. On the other hand,
the creature is neither quarrelsome nor COM
bative; it is not given to fighting at pairing
time as other fowls are. Moreover, it is an
extremely cunning bird, and knows almost to
nicely how far fowling piece will carry.
A farmer and farmers wagon may come
within a dozen feet of it's nest, and it will
take no notice of either. Let a sportsman
show himself in the distance, and it is out of
range in an instant There are ordinarily
only two ways of bringing down your bird
One is to hide in hay wagon and drive
within range; the other to obtain a pipe
made out of the gristly windpipe of an OK,
lie down in the long grass, and initiate the
call of hen bustard. The male is a very
uxorious creature, and cannot resist the cry
of its mate.
In winter the birds are found associated in
larger numbers-as many as eighty or hun
dred together But this does not arise from
any desire for companionship nor have the
fowls any common purpose to serve in so
associating. 1t is due to the simple fact that
the area within which food is to be had be-
comes more and more circumscribed as the
weather gets colder. And it is to be observed
that the parties composing the flock never
mingle If from any cause such a body,
eighty or hundred strong, be disturbed, it
will instantly break up into three or four dis
tinct troops, in which every individual ap-
pears to know its place If, again, one of
these smaller divisions of twenty or thirty
be pursued, the birds will separate into par
ties of ten or twelve, each batch making off
in different direction.
A STRANGE DISABILITY.
In ordinary winter weather the birds take
shelter beneath the nearest underwood or
brush, and at such times the hunter NAV
look in vain for the bustard. But with an
exceptionally strong frost, Or cold snap last
ing more than a couple of days, comes the
sportsnlan's opportunity. Then the poor
creature falls an easy prey to its enemies, for
at such times it Is subject to a strange disa-
bility. The feathers of its wings freeze, a
covering of ice forms over them, and the
bird is unable to rise. During the night the
heavy hoar frost that prevails during excep-
tionally cold weather in Russia settles on and
in the wing feathers, binding them together.
In this condition the bird seeks the open, and
passes its beak through the frozen pinions to
free them from the ice. But if the heavy
frost continue night and day, Or the bird
be prevented from leaving the brush to free
itself from the incumbrance, all is over with
1t. The ice crystals still form upon and over
power its wings; the bird sinks from over
fatigue and cold, and the fox and wolf, al
ways on the watch for this opportunity, find
the bustard an easy prey.
Aware of this, the bustard hunters know
exactly what to do and when to look for
their quarry. When an unusually severe
spell of cold sets in, or very keen boar
frost lasts more than a dag OF so, they make
their preparations Horses are carefully
rough shod, for the sport is pursued on horse
back, and the ground is as smooth and
slippery as piece of ice. Then in the morn
ing, not too early, the party-four, five or
six strong-starts. Each one goes armed
with whip having a stout handle and
couple of lassoes; firearms are not needed,
The most promising feeding grounds in the
neighborhood are of course, known to the
sportsmen, and they make for the cover ,
nearest to these places. Now they beat the
underwood and brush, hallooing and crack
ing their whips. The frightened birds rush
out and try to make for the open. But the
weight of their frozen wings presses them
down; the feathers are covered with ice;
they can neither rise nor run. They Just !
waddle here and there in a helpless ungainly |
fashion. Crack! crack! go the whips; and |
the birds nearest the horsemen fall right and !
left, instantly killed by a dexterous blow on |
the head with the whip stock. Out fly the |
1assos, and more distant birds are struggling |
in the moose Where four, five or six persons |
take part i'll such hunt, a few minutes suf- |
flee to dispatch fairly large number of bus
tards; and then move is made to fresh |
ground.
The bustard, it is curious to note, is the
only bird of the steppe that is liable to this
freezing of the pinion feathers in severe
weather; but ducks are often found on the |
larger rivers frozen to the ice by their legs
St. James Gazette.