64 WILD TURKEY. 



uniting the luscious obesity of the one, with the wild flavour of 

 the other. A gentleman, residing in Westehester County, New 

 York, a few years since procured a young female, wild turkey, in 

 order to make the experiment of crossing the breed ; but, owing to 

 some circumstances, it did not succeed, and in the ensuing spring, 

 this female disappeared ; in the following autumn she returned, 

 followed by a large brood ; these were quite shy, but, by a little 

 management, they were secured in a coop, and the mother allowed 

 her liberty ; she remained on the farm until the succeeding spring, 

 when she again disappeared, and returned in the autumn, with 

 another brood. This course she has repeated for several successive 

 years. 



The domesticated young, reared from the eggs of the wild turkey, 

 are often employed as decoy birds, to those in a state of nature. 

 Mr. Wm. Bloom, of Clearfield, Pennsylvania, caught five or six 

 wild turkeys, when quite chickens, and succeeded in rearing them. 

 Although sufficiently tame to feed with his tame turkeys, and 

 generally associate with them, yet they always retained some of 

 their original propensities, roosting by themselves, and higher 

 than the tame birds, generally on the top of some tree, or of the 

 house; they were also more readily alarmed. Mr. Bloom re- 

 marked, that the wild turkey will thrive more, and keep in better 

 condition, than the tame, on the same quantity of food. 



THE OCELLATED TURKEY 



Is a distinct variety from the preceding, found in Honduras, of 

 beautiful plumage, and, as its name indicates, the feathers are 

 eyed like those of the peacock. A stuffed specimen was exhibited 

 by Mr. Bullock, at the Egyptian Hall, but at the breaking up of 

 that establishment, was removed to the Jardin de Plants, at Paris, 

 since which, some living specimens have been introduced, one of 

 which I saw, in the possession of the Earl of Derby, of which the 

 following is a description : 



In size, it is nearly equal to the common turkey, but the tail is 

 not so ample. The bill is of the same form, and the base with a 

 caruncle, which is capable of the same dilation and contraction, 

 with that of its congener. The head and two-thirds of the neck 

 are naked, and appear of the same livid colour, but without any 

 trace of the fleshy tubercles on the lower part, which are so pro- 

 minent a feature in the physiognomy of the common turkey. 

 The only appearance of any is five or six above each eye, five 

 upon the centre of the crown, and upon the side of the neck, 



