THE TURKEY FAMILY 



THE WILD TURKEY 



(Meleagris sylvestris) 



Adult male Plumage of body glittering with a metallic lustre, 

 showing bronzy gold, green, and red, in changing lights, each 

 feather banded at tip with velvety black ; secondaries, bronzy 

 green, barred with grayish, or buffy white ; primaries, black, 

 conspicuously barred with white ; rump, blackish, with purplish 

 gloss ; upper tail-coverts, rich chestnut, shot with metallic red 

 and barred with black ; tail, chestnut, barred and vermiculated 

 with black, a broad black band near tip, all the feathers tipped 

 with rich buff; head and neck, red, almost naked, there being 

 some scattering black bristles; from the centre of the breast 

 hangs a tuft of long, stiff black bristles of varying lengths ; 

 legs, red ; spurs, dark horn ; bill, reddish horn. Total length, 

 about four feet; wing, 21 inches; tail, 19; weight, varying 

 from about fifteen to about forty pounds. The female usually 

 is much smaller and lacks the bristles on the breast; the plu- 

 mage is subdued in tone with but little metallic sheen. Range, 

 from Pennsylvania to the Gulf States, except Florida; west- 

 ward, to Wisconsin, south to Texas. Haunts, forested districts- 

 The downy young are pretty, delicate little things, yellowish 

 buff with darker markings on the upper parts exactly like the 

 young of the domestic bronze turkey. 



The complete history of this truly noble bird 

 would fill a book much larger than this volume. 

 Formerly abundant throughout its range, the 

 great flocks have dwindled to a beggarly remnant 

 which can only be saved from final destruction 



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