174 GAME BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA. 



The young are very delicate little things and a wetting 

 is almost certainly fatal, and it is a wonder how the 

 mother is able to raise as many as she does. Certainly 

 the task before her is no light one, to guard and protect 

 her brood against the elements as well as all her furred, 

 feathered, and scaly enemies, always on the alert for such 

 a desirable morsel as a chicken turkey. In the early 

 spring at break of day the gobblers are heard calling 

 from some favored roost in the forest. At such times 

 they are exceedingly watchful and suspicious, and the 

 least glimpse of a hunter, or frequently the breaking of 

 a stick under foot, will cause them to fly at once, and 

 it is rare for them to return to the vicinity of that place 

 again during the day. The hens attend these trysting 

 places, and should two gobblers meet they fight desper- 

 ately, as they are very jealous and ready at all times to 

 defend their fancied prerogatives. Many are shot at this 

 season, as the birds are accustomed to resort to the same 

 roost at night, and when this has been discovered, the 

 hunter either goes near to it during the night and waits 

 for the dawn and light enough to see the sights of his 

 gun, or makes a stealthy stalk until within shot, after 

 the break of day. One brood is raised in a season, but 

 a hen may lay a second complement of eggs, if from any 

 mishap the first clutch has been lost. The eggs are 

 creamy white, finely spotted with reddish brown. At 

 the end of the nesting season the males separate from the 

 females and keep by themselves, reuniting again when 

 they have recovered their pristine vigor. The females 

 lead their young where they can catch insects and such 

 other food as is suitable for them, and each family keeps 

 apart until the young are fairly well-grown, and then 

 several may join together, their number at length being 

 augmented by the returning males. 



