DISTRIBUTION IN SPACE 119 



as to whether it is strictly indigenous to that 

 locality. Last of the aberrant Galliformes comes 

 the Hoactzin, a species confined to the tropical 

 portions of South America. There are many 

 points of interest about the distribution of the 

 Typical Game Birds. Many of the families are 

 strictly geographical. Thus the Grouse are 

 confined to the Nearctic and Palaearctic Regions 

 — to the Northern Hemisphere in fact — another 

 fact in support of the contention that these two 

 regions should be merged into one. Then there 

 are two distinct groups, each composed of Par- 

 tridges and Quails, having representatives in the 

 New World and the Old World respectively. 

 Then again the Pheasants are almost exclusively 

 confined to Asia, whilst the Turkeys are just as 

 completely a feature of America. The Guinea 

 Fowls entirely belong to the Ethiopian Region, 

 and the Hemipodes are restricted to the Old 

 World. Many of the sub-families and genera 

 again are confined within comparatively narrow 

 geographical limits, as, for instance, the Peacocks 

 to the Oriental Region, the Jungle Fowls (from 

 which the various breeds of domestic Fowls have 

 been derived) to India and Malaysia, the beautiful 

 Polypectrons to India, China, and Malaysia, and 

 so on, 



