Order GALLOJ:. 



Char. Bill usually rather short and stout, and less than the head. 

 Basal portion liard, generally covered with feathers, and not by a soft naked 

 skin. Legs lengthened ; the hind toe generally elevated above the level of 

 the rest, and short ; when lower down it is longer. Toes connected at the 

 base by a membrane. The feathers of forehead not extending on the cul- 

 men in a point, but more restricted, and parted by the backward extension 

 of the culnien. 



This di\'ision, of which the common liarn-yard fowl {Gallus) is the type, 

 has numerous representatives in tlie tropics, most of which belong to fami- 

 lies diii'erent from those found here. 



The Poidopida:, peculiar to LlidcUe and South America, ]ia-\-e tlie hind 

 toe even witli the others, as in most pigeons, and are mostly large birds 

 known as Curassows, Guans, etc. 



The Phasianidm, including tlie common fowl, are mostly Asiatic, but have 

 one genus in America, namely, Mdcagrk, including the turkeys, of which 

 the M. Mcxicana, found as far northwest as Tucson, is now believed to be the 

 original stock of the domestic turkey. 



Family PHASIANID^E, The Tiieasaxts. 



Char. Bill moderate, the legs, toes, and nasal fossae liare ; tlie tarsus 

 usually with one or more spurs, in the male. Tlie hind toe elevated 

 above the level of the otliers. Tail feathers more than twelve. Face 

 generally more or less naked. 



Of the entire family of Pliasianidce, as above described, but a single 

 genus, MdccKjris, belongs to America, the others being found entirely in tlie 

 Old World. It includes the different pheasants, Jungle fowl, the domestic 



