236 DOMESTICATED ANIMALS AND PLANTS 



which suggests the fact that, as in many similar cases, we owe 

 a lasting debt of gratitude to the ancient people of that far-off 

 country for thus bringing into our service one of the most wary 

 of all the wild birds, and making of it one of the most valuable 

 of the domesticated races. 



Its nearest relatives are the pheasants, and many exceedingly 

 closely related species are found wild in widely scattered regions 

 of the East, their favorite haunts being the forests of Farther 

 India. The prairie chicken of the West, though a true grouse, 

 is, to all intents and purposes, the American equivalent of this 

 Asiatic product, and, had it been necessary, would have afforded 

 material for a valuable domestic bird. 



The goose. The wild goose yet lingers in many parts of the 

 world, notably the gray lag goose {Anser cinercus), nesting 

 in the northern British Islands, — the probable parent of the 

 domesticated goose. Its American equivalent is represented by 

 no less than three well-defined species, the snow goose of the 

 far north (Atiser hyperboreiis), the smaller Ross's goose of 

 the northwest and the blue-winged goose {Anser ccendescens), 

 whose feeding and breeding places are along the great lakes of 

 northern United States and Canada. Besides these there are 

 many closely related species ; indeed, they breed everywhere in 

 the subarctic regions. 



Here, again, it was a foreign strain that furnished the material 

 for domestication, because the goose is an old-time favorite ; 

 indeed, it is probable that he has already passed his period of 

 greatness among us. He has always been prized for his feathers, 

 but cannot be regarded as the equal of either the chicken, the 

 turkey, or even the duck as a table delicacy. 



The duck. Here again the wild form is common, indeed so 

 common as to be a favorite game bird. Of the numerous species 

 the beautiful mallard (Anas boscas) is the typical game duck 

 and is regarded as the parent and progenitor of the domesticated 

 form. This species is said to inhabit the whole of the western 

 hemisphere, wherever suitable feeding grounds can be found 



