Wild Turkey Crosses 265 



tion this season was very tame and unsuspicious 

 until several were snared for exhibition at the 

 Kingston Fair. Since then they have been so shy 

 that we were unable to secure another lot. They 

 take flight immediately if a suspicious movement 

 is made. They will be more easily caught later 

 in the season. The wild blood gives the cross an 

 astonishing ability to care for themselves. It is 

 apt to have the strongest influence in breeding. 

 If first crosses are bred together the stock resem- 

 bles the pure wild, and after several generations 

 cannot be distinguished from the pure wild by 

 good judges. The older the bird grows the more 

 he shows the wild blood. Crosses have much of 

 the superior game flavor of the wild and com- 

 mand a higher price for the table. 



"Some wild bronze crosses that are half and 

 three-quarters wild blood are as large as the pure 

 bronze turkeys. Several years' crossing, however, 

 with the selection of the largest for breeding each 

 season, gives the greatest size."* 



Domesticated turkeys partake largely of the 

 nature of the wild stock from which they have 

 descended. Many of the domesticated flocks 

 have been crossed on the domesticated fowl within 

 recent years. 



Turkeys that are commonly reared for profit 

 on farms are of a roving disposition and do not 



* Bulletin No. 25, Rhode Island Agricultural Experiment Station. 



