4o8 



The Living Animals of the World 



Phoio by UUol<i->Ui 1 lioto Co] {_! uibOii b Oiui' 



BLACK-CHESTED CRESTED GUINEA-FOWL. 



At Durban these birds .are often bawked by Kaffir hunters, the flesh 

 beini^ very delicate and much esteemed. 



The Hamburgs are of two kinds — the 

 Spangled, which is of English, and the 

 Pencilled, of Continental origin. 



A very old breed is the Polish. It figures 

 often in the pictures of the old Dutch 

 masters. One of its chief characteristics is 

 the husje crest of feathers rising from the 

 crown of the head. The development of this 

 crest has had a very extraordinary effect upon 

 the conformation of the bones of the skull, 

 entirely altering the shaj^e of the brain-case. 



Perhaiis the most artificial of all breeds 

 of fowl are the Sebright Bantam.s. These are 

 diminutive birds, the result of a cross between 

 the Polish with '• laced " feathers and a bantam. 

 The feathers of this cross are beautifully 

 '• laced "■ — that is, they are white, edged with 

 black. Another interesting diminutive breed 

 is the Japanese Bantam. The cock carries its tail, which is long, remarkably high, giving a 

 very quaint effect. This breed is further interesting, since it furnishes us with an instance 

 of the breeder's power of localising colour by selection. The tail is black and the body 

 white. Yet another interesting Jajmnese fowl is the remarkable long-tailed breed in which 

 the tail-coverts grow continuously, attaining a length of from 9 feet to, it is said, 18 feet. 

 The birds are kept for show purposes. The greater part of their lives is passed tethered 



on high perches. Once a day they are taken 

 .. ,,,:r,, down for exercise, when the long feathers are 



carefully rolled up and securely fastened out 

 of harm's way. 



The Argus-pheasant and Peacock and 

 THEHi Allies. 



The Argus-pheasant most certainly 

 demands notice, on account of the extra- 

 ordinary' de\-elopment of the wing-quills, 

 which are nearly a yard long, and the 

 wondrous beauty of the pattern thereon. 

 This pattern takes the form of a number of 

 eyes, so shaded as to give the appearance, 

 when fully displayed, of a number of balls 

 lying in a socket. These enormous quills 

 are borne only by the male, and used, like 

 the ornamental feathers of its allies, in cap- 

 tivating the female. When fully displayed, 

 the two wings are spread out to form one 

 huge fan, producing an effect which words 

 cannot adequately describe. The argus- 

 pheasants are found in the forests of Siam, 

 the Malay Peninsula, and Sumatra, and are 

 excessively wary birds. 



The Peacock is too well known to need 

 a very long description. But a word as to 

 the so-called "tail." This magnificent wealth 



i koto bn W. P. Uaado, F.Z. H. J [AcycnCs J-ark. 



BLACK-CHESTED GUESTED GUINEA-FOWL. 



This is a black bird, with light blue spots. 



