THE DODO. 369 
THE position held by the celebrated Dopo among birds was long doubtful, 
and was only settled in comparatively late years by careful examination of 
ay relics which are our sole and scanty records of this very remarkable 
ird. 
So plentiful were the Dodos at one time, and so easily were they killed, 
that the sailors were in the habit 
of slaying the birds merely for 
the sake of the stones in their 
stomachs, these being found very 
efficacious in sharpening their 
clasp-knives. The nest of the 
Dodo was a mere heap of fallen 
leaves gathered together on the 
ground, and the bird laid but one 
large egg. The weight of one / 
full-grown Dodo was said to be 
between forty and fifty pounds. 
The colour of the plumage was 
a greyish brown in the adult TURTLE DOVE. —(Yurtur auritus.) 
males, not unlike that of the 
ostrich, while the plumage of the females was of a paler hue. 
LEAVING the pigeons, we now come to the large and important order of 
birds termed scientifically the Gallinze, and, more popularly, the Poultry. 
Sometimes they are termed Rasores, or Scrapers, from their habit of scraping 
up the ground in search of food. To this order belong our domestic poultry, 
the grouse, partridges, and quails, the turkeys, pheasants, and many other 
useful and interesting birds. 
Our first example of these birds is the CRESTED CURASSOW, the repre- 
sentative of the genus 
Crax, in which are to 
be found a number of 
truly splendid birds. 
All the Curassows are 
natives of tropical Ame- 
rica, and are found al- 
most wholly in the 
forests. 
The Crested Curas- 
sow inhabits the thickly 
wooded districts of Gui- 
ana, Mexico, and Brazil, 
and is very plentifully 
found in those coun- 
tries. It is a really 
handsome bird, nearly 
as large as the turkey, 
and more imposing in 
form and colour. It is 
gregarious in its habits, 
and assembles together 
in large troops, mostly 
perched on the branches 
of trees. It is suscepti- 
ble of domestication, and, to all appearances, may be acclimatized to this 
country as well as the turkey or the pheasant. 
-Mldy,, 
DoDo.—(Didus ineptus.) 
BB 
