16 GALLINACEOUS BIRDS. 



S. Most of our poultry belongs to this order ; and no other 

 affords man so many resources for his wants or his pleasures. 

 The flesh of many of the Gallinacese supplies a light and whole- 

 some meat which nourishes without overloading the stomach. 

 Their feathers are applied to different purposes ; they are employed 

 as ornaments, and also in the useful arts. These birds are almost 

 all from the warm countries of both continents. 



4. This order is divided into two families, as follows: 



5. First. The Gallinace-e properly so called, having the 

 anterior toes united at their base by a short membrane, which is 

 dentate on the edges ; the tail is, generally, composed of fourteen 

 or a greater number of quills. 



6. Second. The Pigeons, having the toes entirely divided, and 

 the tail, formed of twelve quills. 



FAMILY OF GALLINACE.^ PROPERLY SO CALLED. 



7. The Gallinaceffi properly so called, have a short, convex 

 beak with the upper mandible arched or vaulted, and curved 

 from its base to the point ; their nostrils, which are pierced 

 through a broad membranous space, are covered by a cartila- 

 ginous scale ; their three front toes are united by a short mem- 

 brane ; the posterior toe articulates high on the tarsus, above the 

 articulations of the anterior toes : sometimes, though rarely, the 

 posterior toe is entirely wanting, or it is very small, and in many 

 species, principally in the male, we remark on the posterior part 

 of the tarsus, above the thumb, a process or projection called a 

 spur, formed of a bony spine, covered externally with horn, more 

 or less pointed, according to the species, and which increases in 

 length as the animal advances in age. {Plate 4, Jig. 1 1, and Plate 

 7, Jig. 15.) The tarsi are short or of moderate length, and the 

 feet are adapted for running or walking. These birds are very 

 heavy ; the body is fleshy, and the wings short, which, with the 

 weakness of their pectoral muscles, renders their flight laborious. 

 They are all pulverators, that is, they love to scratch the ground, 

 and wallow in the dust ; they generally feed on grains, some- 

 times on insects, and many species, on berries and buds. To 

 swallow fluids when introduced into the beak, they elevate their 

 head in the air. The females live in troops with a single male. 

 Their nest is almost always made without art, upon the ground, 

 and the male takes no part, either in its construction or in the 



3. To what uses are birds of this order applied? 



4. How is this order divided? 



5. What are the general characters of the Gallinaceae properly so called? 



6. What are the general characters of Pigeons ? 



7. How are the GalHnaceae properly so called characterised ? What are 

 their habits ? 



