130 POPDLAK OFFICIAL GUIDE. 



THE WILD TURKEY ENCLOSURE, No. 33. 



At the northern end of Squirrel Ridge, where the AUi- 

 si-ator Walk intersects the Rodent Wallj, an ideal quarter of 

 an acre, of oak and hickory trees, underbrush, and bare rock, 

 has been dedicated to the king of game birds. 



The Wild Ttirkey, (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris). is a 

 bird of magnificent size and presence, and the splendid me- 

 tallic luster of his plumage— a mixture of burnished bronze 

 copper, lapis lazuli, and fire opal iridescence — backed up 

 by a great bulk of savory flesh, all combine to make this the 

 finest game bird on earth. It was once fairly abundant 

 throughout the eastern United States, and still is found in 

 Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, Virginia, and other Southern 

 States'^ as far west as Texas. Three other species of Melea- 

 sris are now recognized— one in Florida, one in southern 

 Texas and northeastern Mexico, and the fourth in Mexico, 

 extending to western Texas and Arizona. 



THE LARGE BIRD-HOUSE, No. 7. 



On the northwest quarter of Baird Court stands the larg- 

 est and the most generously equipped home for perching 

 birds now in existence. This is not an unnecessary boast, 

 but merely a brief statement of a fact which the visitor has 

 a right to know. It was designed on our long-established 

 principle that every captive wild creature is entitled to 

 life, exercise and happiness. Our principle of very large 

 cages, with many birds in each cage, is just the reverse of 

 the views that have prevailed in the older zoological gardens, 

 even down to the present day. To an important extent, the 

 cage equipment of this building represents a new departure 

 There are many zoologists with experience longer than ours 

 who believe that small birds thrive better and live longer 

 when installed in small cages, with only one or two birds in 

 each. ' 



The new Bird-House, specially designed for Passerine 

 birds, was developed on the strength of experiments pre- 

 viously made in the Aquatic Bird House, and in community 

 cages outside. After twenty months' experience with the 

 new building, and a careful tabulation of diseases and death 



