THE TURKEY HISTORIC 51 



"Belon, ('Hist, des Oys.,' 248) the earliest of 

 those writers," says Pennant, "who are of the 

 opinion that these birds were natives of the old 

 world, founds his notion on the description of 

 the Guinea-fowl, the Meleagrides of Strabo, 

 Athenaeus, Pliny, and others of the ancients. 

 I rest the refutation on the excellent account 

 given by Athenseus, taken from Clytus Milesius, 

 a disciple of Aristotle, which can suit no other 

 than that fowl. " They want," says he, " natural 

 affection towards their young; their head is 

 naked, and on the top is a hard round body like 

 a peg or nail; from their cheeks hangs a red piece 

 of flesh like a beard. It has no wattles like the 

 common poultry. The feathers are black, spot- 

 ted with white. They have no spurs; and both 

 sexes are so alike as not to be distinguished by the 

 sight." Varro (Lib. III. c.9.) and Pliny (Lib. X. 

 c. 26) take notice of the spotted plumage and 

 the gibbous substance on the head. Athenseus 

 is more minute, and contradicts every character 

 of the Turkey, whose females are remarkable for 

 their natural affection, and differ materially in 

 form from the males, whose heads are destitute 



