BIRDS OF 



all the quills brown closely barred with white ; tail chestnut barred with 

 black and a broad subterminal black bar. Tip of tail feathers and upper 

 tail-coverts lighter chestnut. Length, 3-4 feet. 



HAB. United States, from Southern Canada to the Gulf coast, and west 

 to the Plains, along the timbered river valleys ; formerly along the Atlantic 

 coast to Southern Maine. 



Nest on the ground. 



Eggs, i o to 15 ; dark buff or cream color, thickly sprinkled with dark 

 umber-brown. 



Within the recollection of people still living, Wild Turkeys 

 were comparatively common along our south-western frontier. 

 Mr. Wagstaff in his letter already referred to says : " Wild 

 Turkeys are getting scarce. They were once numerous in 

 Kent and Essex, going about in flocks, but the severe winter of 

 1842 almost exterminated them. About 1856 they had again 

 become numerous, but are gradually getting fewer in number 

 as the settler's axe clears away the timber." In the List of 

 Birds of Western Ontario it is stated that a nest was found in 

 the County of Middlesex in 1878. 



That veteran sportsman and naturalist, Dr. Gamier, of 

 Lucknow, writing under date of December nth, 1884, says: 

 " I have killed several Wild Turkeys in the County of Kent, 

 and saw one there this season which I did not obtain. 



On the 2ist of last October I had a female of this species in 

 my hands at Chatham station, which had just been killed near 

 by. About four years ago, at Leguis farm, near Mitchell's Bay, 

 I saw three gobblers, two of which I killed right and left, the 

 third was shot the same day by a boy from whom I bought it 

 for a dollar. 



Most of the domestic Turkeys in that section are either the 

 wild species tamed or half-breeds, and are far superior in flavor 

 to the ordinary stock. In 1856 I killed two out of a large flock 

 within half a mile of Hagersville, which at that time consisted 

 of a waggon-shop, a toll-gate, postoffrce, and a small shop called 

 1 store.' I also got a set of nine eggs, and found the female 

 killed by a fox, lying close by, still warm but quite dead." 



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