8 



MISCELLANEOUS CIRCULAR 36, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 



mitting travel only on foot. As for the buffalo, he is a dangerous 

 animal, never to be trusted, and it is unsafe for those not familiar 

 with his habits to enter the buffalo pastures. 



WILD TURKEYS 



In 1912 the United States Bureau of Biological Survey shipped 13 

 wild turkeys to the Wichita Game Preserve from Atoka, Okla. They 

 were placed in a large inclosure where they could be given careful 

 attention. Some of them, however, had the roup when they arrived, 

 others took it later, and they all died except a gobbler and two hens. 

 These were moved into a new inclosure where they were given special 

 care, and they became the nucleus of the present flock, which numbers 

 at least 300. (Fig. 6.) In the early days, prior to the establish- 

 ment of the game preserve, wild turkeys were plentiful in this sec- 

 tion of Oklahoma, but they were steadily reduced in number with the 



Fig. 6.— Wild turkeys— once plentiful in Oklahoma. After years of watchful care there is a sizeable 

 flock in the Wichita National Forest 



growing settlement of the country. The last trace of the original 

 flocks had disappeared at least two years before the importation of 

 the new flock into the preserve. 



BIRDS 



The Wichita National Forest and Game Preserve abounds in 

 native bird life. One visitor in 1920 noted 49 different species during 

 a single week. Among the species most common are the cardinal, 

 summer tanager, rock wren, canyon wren (rare elsewhere in the 

 region), titmouse, nuthatch, chickadee, bluebird, and several varie- 

 ties of woodpecker, crow, hawk, and owl. • 



SCENERY 



In scenic value the Wichita National Forest and Game Preserve 

 ranks high among the national forests of the country . The Wichita 

 Mountains, according to geologists, are the oldest mountain range in 

 continental United States, and even to the unscientific eye their 



