230 HISTORY OF THE 



Subfamily MELEAGRIN^. Turkeys. 



"Bill moderate; the nasal fossae bare. Head and neck without feathers, but 

 with scattered hairs and more or less carunculated, an extensible, fleshy process 

 on the forehead, but no development of the bone. Tarsus armed with spurs in 

 the male. Hind toe elevated. Tail nearly as long as the wing, truncate, of more 

 than twelve feathers." 



Genus MELEAGRIS Linn.eus. 



"Legs with transverse scuteUse before and behind; reticulated laterally. 



Tarsi with spurs. Tail rounded, rather long, usually of eighteen feathers. 



Forehead with a depending, fleshy cone. Head and the upper half of the neck 



without feathers. Breast of male in most species with a long tuft of bristles." 



Meleagris gallopavo Linn. 



WILD TURKEY. 

 PLATE XIV. 



An abundant resident in the early settlement of the State, 

 but now nearly extinct. Begin laying early in April. 



B. 457. R. 470. C. 554. G. 217, 108. U. 310. 



Habitat. Eastern United States; north to southern Canada; 



south to Florida and eastern Texas; west along the timbered 



streams to the edge of the Great Plains. The Mexican Turkey, 



M. gallopavo mexicana^ occurs southwest of the limits as given. 



Sp. Char. "The naked skin of the head and neck is blue; the excrescences 

 purplish red; the legs red. The feathers of the neck and body generally are 

 very broad, abruptly truncate, and each one well defined and scale-like; the ex- 

 posed portion coppery bronze, with a bright coppery reflection in some lights — in 

 the specimens before us, chiefly on the under parts. Each feather is abruptly 

 margined with velvet black, the bronze assuming a greenish or purplish shade 

 near the line of junction, and the bronze itself sometimes with a greenish reflec- 

 tion in some lights. The black is opaque, except along the extreme tip, where 

 there is a metallic gloss. The feathers of the lower back and rump are black, 

 with little or no copper gloss. The feathers of the sides behind, and the coverts, 

 upper and under, are of a very dark purplish chestnut, with purplish metallic 

 reflections near the end, and a subterminal bar of black; the tips are of the 

 opaque purplish chestnut referred to. The concealed portion of the coverts is 

 dark chestnut, barred rather finely with black; the black wider than the inter- 

 spaces. The tail feathers are dark brownish chestnut, with numerous transver^e 

 bars of black, which, when most distinct, are about a quarter of an inch wide 

 and about double their interspaces; the extreme tip for about half an inch is 

 plain chestnut, lighter than the ground color; and there is a broad subterminal 

 bar of black about two inches wide on the outer feathers, and narrowing to about 

 three-quarters of an inch to the central ones. The innermost pair scarcely shows 

 this band, and the otliers are all much broken and confused. In addition to the 

 l)lack bars on each feather, the chestnut interspaces are sprinkled with black. 



