64 A BOOK OF BIRDS 



the Turkeys. The Mexican Turkey (Plate X. fig. 3) is the ancestor 

 of the Turkeys of our farmyards, the males of which strut so proudly 

 with the feathers of the back on end, the wings dropped, and the 

 tail spread like some great wheel. One of the most remarkable 

 features of the Turkey is the curious tuft of hair-like feathers which 

 hangs down from the breast, though the brilliantly coloured naked 

 skin of the head and neck is more striking. The long, finger-like, 

 fleshy wattle, which hangs down over the beak, can be greatly in- 

 creased in length at the will of the bird. 



Turkeys in a wild state occur only in the southern United States, 

 and they are becoming more and more rare. 



The Guinea-fowl (Plate X. fig. 2) is a native of Africa. This 

 bird is easily domesticated, and is a common occupant of our farm- 

 yards, enlivening the scene by their strange shape and curious cry, 

 ** Come-back, come-back, come-back." But besides this species, 

 there are numerous others known to science, of which the most 

 beautiful is the Vulturine Guinea-fowl. 



The Pheasant tribe includes some very unpheasant-like birds, 

 at least to those who are not well versed in the study of Ornithology. 



Our domesticated fowls, for example, are really near relations of 

 the Pheasants. All the different kinds of Fowls which are now known 

 have descended from the Jungle-fowl — the ** Bhund Moorg " — of 

 India. By careful breeding man has produced from this bird such 

 remarkable varieties as the Cochin-china, the Polish-fowl, the Black 

 Spanish, Hamburg, and a host of others. But of these domesticated 

 races which man has created, some bear a rather close likeness to 

 the Red Jungle-fowl — such, for example, as the fowls known as 

 the *' Game-fowl," from which '' fighting-cocks " were bred in days 

 when ** cock-fighting " was a common sport in England. And after 

 these perhaps the next nearest is the Brown Leghorn fowl (Plate X. 

 fig. 4a), though in this breed the comb is much larger than in the 

 wild Jungle-fowl. 



Of the true Pheasants, the familiar "Common Pheasant" (Plate 

 XI. fig. 3) is the best known. This is a native of Asia Minor. Once 

 upon a time, however. Pheasants lived wild in Europe, as is shown 

 by fossil remains. Thus, the Pheasants of our coverts may have 

 originally descended from these European birds, though it is generally 



