
Second broods -- Although several authors have indicated 
that second broods may be produced, no actual case of this has been 
recorded. ; 
Diseases and Parasites 
Almost np study has been made of the diseases and parasites 
of wild junglefowl. Birds living in the vicinity of villages located 
near the forest are in fairly frequent contact with probably diseased 
village hens; yet, where guns and nets are scarce, they seem to maintain 
themselves in considerable abundance year after year. Those trapped 
alive and kept with poultry, or in contaminated areas have been known 
to die of Newcastle disease in India. They probably also are subject to 
many other diseases common to poultry. 
As to parasites, lice were found on one bird shot in the wild. 
Among the five wild birds on which a post mortem was made no internal 
parasites were recognized. Given a more representative sample, it is 
probable that some would have been found. 
To avoid, insofar as practical, the possibility of introducing 
disease along with the 72 red junglefowl breeders shipped to date to the 
United States from India, 70 of these were raised in New Delhi either 
from eggs or chicks gathered in the wild. In rearing these, coccidiosis 
and simple coryza were the only two diseases encountered. 
Analysis of Competing Interests 
Relation to Agriculture 
In considering the advisability of introducing a foreign 
species of game bird into the United States, no question was more carefully 
considered than that of the species relation to agricultural pursuits in ~ 
its native region. Since these birds often feed in cultivated fields 
adjacent to woodlands many people have assumed that they are primarily 
granivorous. This may not be true; for, in examining 37 crops of birds, 
some shot at the edge of cultivation, grain was found in only two. 
Junglefowl probably will occasionally eat wheat, barley, rice or corn 
gleaned from the waste in the field. No farmer, of the many contacted, 
however, considered the junglefowl to be a pest on his crops. In fact, 
most of them doubted that standing grain was ever disturbed by these 
birds. The availability of waste grain, wild seeds and insects, and a 
liking for open places close to cover would seem to be the major reasons 
why junglefowl are often seen at the edges of cultivation. Likewise, 
though skillful at perching and certainly partial to a wide variety of 
wild fruits, no complaint of damage to cultivated fruits was recorded. 
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