VISUAL PERCEPTION OF THE CHICK 3 



fowl, Gallus bankiva." Others think that the jungle and do- 

 mestic fowls sprang from a common ancestor of intermediate 

 size which has since become extinct, but Houwink thinks it is 

 improbable that the domestic fowl has an extinct ancestor, for 

 it, like the known wild poultry races which have maintained 

 themselves in the midst of the oldest and most populous Indian 

 towns, surely have been preserved somewhere in Central Asia. 



The behavior of Bankiva, as reported by certain naturalistic 

 observers, would lead one to regard it as the most probable 

 ancestor of the domestic fowl. Guillemard is cited in Brehm's 

 Tierleben to the effect that captive Bankiva fowls on the island 

 of Sulu are very tame and are easily crossed with domestic 

 fowls. In the same source, but in a different citation, it is 

 asserted that in the mountainous regions of Pegu, where the 

 Bankiva abound, they come into the villages and yards of the 

 natives where they mix with the tame fowls. Another citation 

 has it that crossing with the domestic chick is a common occur- 

 rence in Ceylon and that the male hybrids resulting are far more 

 spirited and have sharper spurs than the parent males. 



At the present time there are domestic fowls which are very 

 similar in structure to the wild Bankiva. It has been found 

 that modifications in food and environment may cause changes 

 in the general form and color of poultry, if we may believe 

 Houwink on this point. It is rather resonable that the breeds 

 resembling Bankiva have descended from that origin. Natural 

 and scientific selection might readily account for the variations 

 and further development that have resulted. 



From discoveries in mounds and other ancient settlements of 

 man, it appears that the chick has long been domesticated. 

 Along with the duck and the goose, the chick could have been 

 taken and held in captivity with comparative ease. On this 

 fact is based the assumption that the origin of the fowl's history 

 dates back to ancient times. Robinson deems it quite probable 

 that it was domesticated before any of the mammals. Houwink 

 on the contrary, reasons that it was not kept by man until 

 population took on a permanent aspect. Unlike the dog, its 

 domestication would have been neglected by the hunter. Such 

 animals as the cow and the horse would naturally be first tamed 

 by the nomads. 



Turning to evidences which ancient literature furnishes, the 



