^'°^i9if^^] Wright, Early Records of the Wild Turkey. 343 



" This hypothesis will explain the fact of our meeting nowhere at 

 the present day any wild turkeys resembling the domestic one. 

 I have an indistinct recollection of a statement that our barnyard 

 turkey came originally from Bermuda or Jamaica, but I cannot 

 speak positively in regard to it. 



"The entire subject is one of much interest, and deserves to be 

 investigated thoroughly. It is quite possible that a careful exam- 

 ination of the external form and habits of the New Mexican bird 

 may do much to throw full light on the whole question." 



It is generally agreed that most of the domestic turkeys come 

 from one or more of the Mexican forms {Meleagris g. intermedia, 

 merriami), though the American {M. g. sihestris), Honduran 

 (1/. ocellata) and Floridan (M. g. osceola) forms may also have 

 contributed. Other varieties of domestic nature may have arisen 

 by recrossings of domestic breeds with the wild birds as has often 

 been done to rejuvenate the stock. It is extremely unlikely that 

 Baird's hypothesis of their origin from a West Indian form now 

 extinct is tenable. Most of the early records of wild turkey in 

 the West Indies are obviously of introduced forms. 0^^edo's 

 note of 1527 is of this nature, as is John Smith's note (1609) of a 

 "store of turkees" in the Bermudas. In the latter region Richard 

 Norwood asserts (1619) that "By this means (transportation) 

 the Countrey was so replenished with Hennes and Turkeyes, 

 within the space of three or foure yeeres, beeing neglected, many 

 of them forsooke the Houses, and became wilde, and so lived in 

 great abundance." In 1596, the Earl of Cumberland also finds 

 in Porto Rico "some Turkies and Ginnyhens." 



This theory of Prof. Baird postulates the former existence of a 

 feral race of which no positive substantiating historical evidence is 

 forthcoming. In the subsequent records, particularly from 1500- 

 1600, possibly some additional light may be thrown on the question 

 of introduction. 



The Records from 1500-1600. 



It seems best to reexamine some of the original sources of our 

 early turkey history. The debatable evidence which may refer 

 either to Crax alector and its allies or to Meleagris follows: Sebas- 



