292 BRANCH CHORDATA 



cock. They are polygamous. The rivalry is keen and the 

 males fight fierce battles. 



The only native bird of the pheasants is the wild turkey, now almost 

 exterminated by the sport men, being found in a few regions of the Eastern 

 and Southern States, and in Oklahoma and Texas. Several pheasants have 

 been introduced into this country from China. The common chickens are 

 descendants of the jungle fowl of India (Gallus bankivus). 



The grouse family all nest on the ground. Their colors are chiefly brown 

 and gray, so they rely on concealment for protection. The " whirr " 

 accompanying flight is caused by the beating of their small concave wings. 



Fig. 238. Quail (Coli'nus Virginia' nus); 10 inches. (Photograph from 



specimen.) 



To this family belong the bob-white or " quail," the sage grouse of the 

 West, and the once common prairie-hen of the Mississippi Valley. The 

 male prairie-chicken has peculiar salmon-colored air-sacs on the sides of his 

 neck which he inflates in making his " bum-bum-boo " as he struts and bows 

 to his prospective mate in the courting season. 



Order XL Colum'bae. This order is represented in the United 

 States by the pigeons and doves. There are about 300 species 

 in the world, but only ten or eleven in the United States. The 

 head is small and round, the bill and legs short, the body 



