TIIK ENdLfSII SPARROW AND ITS ALLIES 305 



" capercallie " and the blackcock are favorite game-birds. 

 The pheasants are characteristic of southern Asia and 

 China; they comprise some of the most brilliantly colored 

 and greatly ornamented of birds, such as the peacock and 

 the golden pheasant. Here also belong our barnyard 

 fowl, derived from a wild species, Grallus bankiva, inhabit- 

 ing northern India, the Kast Indies, and the Philippines. 

 The guinea-fowl is a native of Africa, where it goes in 

 large flocks and is difficult of approach. The turkeys 

 are North American birds. The wild turkey formerly 

 occurred over all the United States and Mexico. It was 

 first taken to Europe in 1524, was domesticated there, and 

 now occupies much of its former habitat as a domesticated 

 fowl. From this brief view we see that the family of (lal- 

 linacei is, for man at least, one of the most important 

 families of birds. 



The Grallatores, or waders, include a great number of 

 shore birds known as plovers, sandpipers, snipes, rails, 

 cranes, herons, and storks. The plovers walk and fly 

 along shore, picking up worms, mollusks, and amphibians; 

 the golden plover and the killdeer are well-known game- 

 birds. The snipes are found in meadows or, less com- 

 monly, in woods. One of the most common is the spotted 

 sandpiper, also called u tip-up " from its rocking move- 

 ments (Fig. 291). It is seen walking around small pools 

 of water by the roadside or in fields. Along the coast 

 are found woodcock and large snipes. Among the herons, 

 our great blue heron attains a length of four feet and is 

 a notable resident of swampy regions; the egrets have 

 been practically exterminated to meet the demands of 

 milliners ; the bittern is still common on tide-flats. 



The Natatores, or swimmers, comprise the ducks and 



