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PEAFOWL, GUINEA-FOWL AND QUAIL 103 



require, and will cease to hover them when they are a few 

 weeks old. Peachicks require the mother's warmth much 

 longer than domestic chicks, and only the peahen is willing 

 to provide it. If a substitute must be found, a quiet turkey 

 is the most suitable. 



The hen and chicks should be allowed full liberty, con- 

 finement being fatal. They may be tried with the foods 

 recommended for young pheasants, but it will be found that 

 insects they find for themselves attract them much more 

 strongly than meal. 



The wings of peachicks are well developed when they 

 leave the shell and they are very soon able to fly. They 

 feather rapidly and the cocks may soon be distinguished 

 from the hens by their larger size, longer crests and bluer 

 necks. An advance toward the wonderful adornment of 

 the adult male is made in each successive year, but it is not 

 until the bird is three years old that the full plumage is at- 

 tained. The young female shows little change, although the 

 neck becomes somewhat greener. The feathers of the train 

 are dropped late in June or early in July, and although their 

 renewal commences at once, the growth is not complete 

 until December or January. 



Several variations from the normal plumage of the Indian 

 Peafowl have been established. The most attractive is the 

 White, and when clean and in good condition no bird is 

 more beautiful. It requires ample space, however, to keep 

 itself presentable, and even under the best of conditions is 

 very likely to be more or less soiled. White Peafowl, like 

 all albinos, breed true when mated together, but the young 

 are not so easily reared as are those of colored birds. 



The Pied Peafowl is easily produced by crossing white 

 and colored specimens. The most usual pattern is normal 

 body and train, with white wings and particolored heads 

 and neck. The females are frequently nearly white. 



