CHAPTEE III 



THE TURKEY PREHISTORIC 



PROBABLY no genus of birds in the 

 American avifauna has received the 

 amount of attention that has been be- 

 stowed upon the turkeys . Ever since the coming 

 to the New World of the very first explorers, 

 who landed in those parts where wild turkeys 

 are to be found, there has been no cessation of 

 verbal narratives, casual notices, and appear- 

 ance of elegant literature relating to the mem- 

 bers of this group. We have not far to seek for 

 the reason for all this, inasmuch as a wild turkey 

 is a very large and unusually handsome bird, 

 commanding the attention of any one who 

 sees it. Its habits, extraordinary behavior, and 

 notes render it still more deserving of considera- 

 tion ; and to all this must be added the fact that 

 wild turkeys are magnificent game birds; the 

 hunting of them peculiarly attractive to the 



26 



