GAME 



BIRDS 



O F 



AMERICA 



to stock the country than any other method now known; except, perhaps, 

 in the northernmost part of its range, where it is sometimes almost 

 exterminated by a severe winter. Event- 

 ually artificial propagation may solve 

 our problem; for Bob White is a very 

 prolific bird. 



THE WILD TURKEY 



The ruffed grouse may be the king 

 of game birds in the field; but the wild 

 turkey, the largest game bird that flies, 

 is to my mind king of them all on the 

 table. A young wild turkey, well 

 roasted, is a dish for the gods. The 

 domesticated turkey is not in the same 

 class; nor is it a descendant of our wild 

 turkey. It was bred from the Mexican 

 turkey, a bird of another race, not so 

 handsome as ours, and having a white 

 rump. This turkey was domesticated 

 by the Aztecs, and hundreds of thou- 

 sands were bred by them in domestication 

 long before America was discovered by 

 Columbus. Europeans received the bird 

 from the hands of 

 the Indians. The 

 white man never 

 has succeeded in 

 domesticating any 

 American game 

 bird sufficiently to 

 bring it into gen- 

 eral use. The task 

 still lies before us. 

 The American 

 Ornithologists' 

 Union now^recog- 

 nizes "but one 

 species and five 

 subspecies of the 

 wild turkey, all of 

 which are natives 

 of this continent. 



Copyright, 1912, by Outdoor World and Recreation 

 THE WILD TURKEY 



Often called the grandest bird of America. 



WILD TURKEY 



This picture shows a female with its young. It is reproduced from one of 

 famous set of plates of "Birds of America" made by J. J. Audubon. 



