44 



THE GAME BREEDER 



THE BLACKHEAD DISEASE. 



Contribution from the Agricultural Experiment Station 

 Rhode Island State College. 



(Continued from April Number.) 



Nesting. 



Qsually by the middle of March on 

 our southern New England ranges, the 

 hen turkeys will become restless and 

 may be observed to make brief tours 

 of investigation into the outlying dis- 

 tricts to which, during the winter 

 months, they have seldom strayed. After 

 a few days, or perhaps a week, during 

 which the nesting possibilities of the 

 neighborhood are being explored, the 

 hen turkey will choose her nest-site, 

 usually in a clump of brush or briers, 

 or in some sheltered and out of the way 

 corner of the stone walls ; then laying 

 will begin. It not uncommonly happens 

 in the case of a late spring that the 

 snow will still be upon the ground when 

 the first eggs are laid. For this reason, 

 but especially for the purpose of fur- 

 nishing greater seclusion for the nesting 

 hen, it is advisable, ordinarily not later 

 than the first of March, to give some 

 aid in preparing the nesting locations. 



Such assistance may be rendered in 

 several ways, depending upon the 

 amount of time and the facilities avail- 

 able to the turkey raiser. The best plan 

 is to construct nesting boxes somewhat 

 resembling a dog kennel, about 24 

 inches by 30 inches and 24 inches high 

 with either a shed or a double pitched 

 roof. There should be no bottom on the 

 box and the door should be small and 

 on one end. A detachable back and 

 removable top facilitate cleaning the 

 boxes. They should be placed in a con- 

 cealed location beside a wall, or in a 

 clump of brush or briers. It is well to 

 partially cover them with cut brush or 

 fir branches if available. 



If it is impracticable to construct nest 

 boxes of this type, barrels may be em- 

 ployed. These should be covered over 

 the top with a strip of roofing paper, 

 tacked in place, and should be blocked 

 underneath to prevent rolling. They 



should then be located, as in the case 

 of the nest boxes, and covered lightly 

 with cut branches or brush. 



If neither of the above aids are avail- 

 able, it frequently suffices to throw to- 

 gether piles of brush alone, the heavier 

 pieces at the bottom. Under this the 

 turkey hen will find her way and locate 

 her nest. 



(To be Continued.) 



— ^ 



SALES OF ONE-DAY OLD BIRDS. 



The sale of one-day-old pheasants 

 and ducks, and probably quail, and the 

 shipping of the birds, with and without 

 foster mothers, will be one of the inter- 

 esting experiments carried on this sea- 

 son by the Game Conservation Society. 

 Several prizes of one-day-old birds are 

 offered by the society for the best short 

 practical stories a:bout game breeding, 

 written by members of the society or 

 others who may wish to compete. The 

 stories should be short, to occupy not 

 over a page in The Game Breeder ; they 

 should give an accurate account of a 

 successful breeding experiment or even 

 an unsuccessful one where the cause of 

 the failure has been discovered. 



Stories about hatching pheasants and 

 ducks in incubators will be very accept- 

 able. It is not necessary to be a "fine 

 writer" to enter this competition. Any 

 one who can write a good plain letter 

 telling of an interesting experience in 

 game breeding will stand an excellent 

 chance of getting a valuable prize. The 

 rapidity with which people are joining 

 The Game Guild indicates that the so- 

 ciety can spend a lot of money for game 

 prizes which in our opinion are far 

 more attractive than the hundreds of 

 new game laws (the number is not ex- 

 aggerated) annually provided for their 

 members iDy the numerous game protec- 

 tive associations. 



