1092 CYCI/5PEDIA OP UVE STOCK AND COMPLETE STOCK DOCTOiU 



vm. The Swan. 



The swan has long been known in history, but is not a useful bird 

 except as an ornamental appendage to the ponds and Irkes of parks. 

 The most common is the white swan ; there are, besides, a number of rare 

 and ornamental varieties, among them the black swan from Australia, and 

 the black-necked Chili swan. The head and neck of the latter are jet 

 black ; the body, wings, and tail, pur^ white, the bill having a red knob 

 or protuborance. 



IX. Pheasantf, 



None of the pheasants {Phasianus) are natives of tlie United States, 

 the so-called pheasant of the South and some other sections of the United 

 States being really the ruffed grouse ( Tetrao umheUus), The convmon 

 half-domesticated pheasant of Europe and America {Phasiaims Qolchi* 

 cus) is found wild in the Caucasus, and about the Caspian Sea. In the 

 United States we have five varieties which breed in confinement, but none 

 of them are more capable of domestication than the peacock. Theso 

 varieties are : The ring-necked, originally from China ; the ash-colored, 

 the white; and the parti-colored. 



The ring-necked pheasant is said to be originally from China. The 

 male of the silver pheasant {Phasianus nycthemerus) originally from the 

 north of China, is a most beautiful bird, of a silver white color, with. 

 regular, slender, lace-like black markings on the feathers of the back, 

 while the under parts are of a black color ; the long, drooping tail is also 

 silver white, barred with black. The female is of a dull reddish color, 

 and of a smaller size. The golden pheasant (Phasianus thaumalea pic- 

 tus) is one of the most beautiful of birds, bred in a state of balf-domes- 

 tication, and is much smaller than either of the pheasants before men- 

 tioned. The under part of the male is of a red color, the head is orna- 

 mented with a splendid golden yellow crest, the neck i» hidden or over- 

 hung by a somewhat projecting ruff of feathers of a bright yellow color, 

 striped or barred with black. The wings are of a dull blue, the hind 

 parts of the body are of a golden color, set off with red, and the tail is 

 long and brown, barred with black The female of this species is also 

 inconspicuous in color. 



These birds have bred well in some forests in Europe, and in a state 

 of domestication have produced three varieties, viz : the ordinary golden 

 and red color, the black, and the Isabella or fawn. They all, like the 

 Guinea-fowl and peafowl, roost on high trees and elevated points, and 

 wander considerably ; but in close confiueioeut they will permit handling. 



