

THE WILD TURKEY 2&? 



From the wild turkey of the East, Merriam's turkey 

 may be distinguished by the whitish tips of the feath- 

 ers of the lower rump, tail coverts and tail. From the 

 Mexican turkey it may be known by its velvety black 

 rump and the greater amount of rusty rufous, succeed- 

 ing white tips on the tail coverts and tail, and by the 

 distinct black and chestnut barring of the middle tail 

 feathers. 



Merriam's turkey thus appears to be about mid- 

 way between the eastern wild turkey and the wild tur- 

 key of Mexico, and in fact the eastern wild turkey 

 grades into Merriam's turkey, as Merriam's turkey 

 grades into the Mexican turkey, whose white-tipped 

 tail coverts and white-tipped tail, as seen in the do- 

 mestic turkey, are so characteristic. 



So in North America we have five forms of turkey, 

 the ranges of which are fairly well defined. 



The Florida wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo 

 osceola), described by Scott about twenty years ago, 

 is confined to Florida, but the precise limits of its range 

 are not yet known. The type specimen came from 

 Tarpon Springs, Fla. 



The Rio Grande turkey (Meleagris gallopauo inter- 

 media) was described by the late George B. Sennett 

 in 1892. It is a striking bird, found in the lowlands 

 of southern Texas and also in northeastern Mexico, 

 where it ranges from the coast lowlands up to over 

 3,000 feet in the adjacent mountains. 



Merriam's turkey (Meleagris gallopavo merriami) 

 was described by E. W. Nelson in 1900. It ranges 



