PART I. HISTORICAL 



CHAPTER I 



Origin and History of the Domestic Fowl 



In the jungles of southern Asia lives a species of birds known, 

 from the nature of its habitat, as the Jungle Fowl. As the 

 name suggests, it is a wild type of Gallus, the comb fowl, to 

 which our domestic chick belongs. Several varieties of these 

 little \\\\d fowls are to be found in India and the Malay regions, 

 but all have general characteristics in common. Four groups 

 are generally recognized, namely, the Banklva Fowl, the Son- 

 nerat Fowl, the Ceylon Jungle Fowl, and the Fork-tailed Jungle 

 Fowl or Gangegar. These jungle fowls are commonly regarded 

 as the ancestors of all the present breeds of domestic fowl. 



Gallus bankiva, the wild type which seems to be most closely 

 related to our domestic fowl, is found throughout India, in the 

 Malay Islands, and in the Philippines. It closely resembles the 

 domestic Black-Red Game Bantam. The feathers of the head 

 and neck, including the long hanging feathers at the back of the 

 head, possess a glistening golden hue. The golden hue of the 

 collar is matched with the long supra-tail feathers, but the 

 shorter straight tail feathers beneath are all black. The middle 

 feathers of the wings are a lively brown, the remainder, in the 

 male, being dark gray with pale borders. The iris is orange red, 

 the head dress red, the bill brown, and the foot slate black. 

 The body length reaches 56 cm., the wing length 22 cm., and 

 the tail length 27 cm. 



The tail of the smaller female stands more erect, her comb 

 and wattles are barely noticeable, and her long neck feathers — 

 black with yellowish borders — add brownish black spots to the 

 mantle plumage. The dorsal side is cream colored. The tail 

 and supra-tail feathers are a brownish black. 



Gallus sonnerati was the first of the wild breeds to become 

 known. It occurs in west, south, and central India. The long 

 slender feathers on the head, neck, and upper back of the male' 



