FAMILY CRACIDJE 

 CHACHALACA 



311. Ortalis vetula mccalli. 21 in. 



Plumage olive-brown above, and gray below; head 

 crested; sides of head and chin, naked, orange-red. 

 These birds are found in southern Texas, in dense 

 woods, thickets and chaparral. They are very noisy, 

 their calls being loud, harsh, clackings, " cha-cha-lac," 

 repeated rapidly and taken up by all the birds in the 

 neighborhood. They are not usually shy and are often 

 domesticated. They are also hunted to some extent, 

 but their flesh is said not to be very good eating, and 

 their body is quite small compared to the length of the 

 bird. 



Nest. A frail platform of sticks, placed in scrub- 

 by brush or bushes, a few feet above the ground. They 

 lay four white or buffy-white eggs, the shell of which 

 is very rough and hard (2.25x1.55); April. 



Range. Eastern Mexico north to southern Texas. 



