The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1877-11-16

more than nve feet from wing 10 wing
Its head, which seems very small for SC
q large bird, and the upper part of it'
Q neck, is covered with a naked, blueisl
: skin. On this skin are mum
8 Der of raised spots, red on
the upper portion and whitish be-
|. low. On the under part of the neck
the skin hangs down, by its own weight,
2 in the shape of large wattles. Where
the bill joins the forehead. a
wrinkled, feshy protuberance rises with
a pencil of hairs at the top; this, when
| the bird is at rest, does not exceed an
inch and half in length but If he be-
comes excited it lengthens out so as to
cover the bill entirely and hang below
il several inches io The male turkey g
4 plumage CLEANS with the the brightest
golden bronze, tinged, according to the
position, with blue, violet and green,
beautifully broken by the deep black
bands which are near the end of each
feather.
! Turkey cocks are not at all gallant
about finding food for the hens. The
females are left to look out for themselves
and their little ones, while the males
lead sort of club-life; though the two
fiocks are never far apart. They are not
very good fathers, as they are rather too
fond of knocking their young ones over
the head, and yet even wild turkeys will
sometimes take good care of brood of
little ones that are left orphans. The
wild turkey is found in Kentucky, Hi
nois, Indiana, Arkansas, Tennessee and
Alabama. 1t is less plentiful in Georgia
and the Carolinas, and is becoming quite
scarce in Virginia. Large hocks go
from place to place about the beginning
of October, searching for the fruit of for
est trees; and if, as often happens, their
march is stopped by river, they all
assemble on the highest part of the
bank, and often remain there whole
day, or sometimes two, as if for consul
tation. During this time themales are
heard gobbling, calling and making
much ado, as much as to say, who's
afraid p and even the hens initiate the
lordly strut of the turkey cocks, though
they make no noise. At length the
whole party fly into the highest trees,
and, at a signal chuck from a leader, the
flock takes wing for the opposite shore.
The young, thin and weak ones, often
fall short of the bank and are forced to
swim, which they do very
dexterously, spreading their tails
for sails, closing theif wings,
stretching their long necks forward, and
striking the water, slowly but forcibly,
with their legs.
About the middle of April, if it is dry
weather, the female selects a place for
her nest, and, as the turkey eggs are
preyed upon by snakes. weasels, and
|
times make large nest together, so that
when they have to leave their eggs to
find food one can be left on guard.
Don't you think they have notion of
what grown persons call cooperative
housekeeping ?" Speaking of the risk
there is of the eggs being eaten, Mr..
Grow plays Mrs. Turkey a pretty trick.
He will watch her until he discovers her
nest, and then, the next time she leaves
it, he will carry all the eggs off and save
them up to eat at his ease Whenever
the turkey leaves her nest, she covers it
so artfully with dry leaves that, even
though one has seen the nest before, it
is very difficult to find it. When the
turkey chicks are Matched out they are
almost as delicate as the tame ones
damp ground is very bad for them !; and,
though tame turkey will lead her chicks
right into wet grass, unless prevent
ed, wild turkey takes care to find high,
dry ground for hers. Still, sometimes
the children get wet feet, and then NAM
ma gives them cough lozenges, picking
off the buds of the spice-wood bush for
them. / suppose each turkey mamma
has learned the prescription from her
mother.
These American wild turkeys have a
cousin in Australia, who builds very
queer nest. The bird is called the
tallegalla or brush turkey. It.builds
high mound which it makes bigger from
year to year, several carloads of ma
terials being used. Six or seven hens
join together to build nest, and run
round large circle, grasping with their
feet the leaves, and grasses, and dead
twigs, which are lying about, and fling
ing them into the center; each time they
make the circle smaller, and the heap
grows higher, and at last mound is
formed. Then they scrape away the
middle of the heap till they have hole
nearly two feet deep, when they lay the
eggs, placing each egg upright, large
end upwards. The eggs are then Gov
cred up and are Matched by the heat of
the sun and fermentation of the heap.
Now the father bird takes care of the
nest, having wonderful instinct which
tells him just how much covering the
eggs need. Sometimes he covers them
with thick layer of leaves, and some
times lays them nearly bare, and does
this several times a day. A great num-
Der of eggs are placed in the nest, a
bushel being sometimes taken from a
single mound. These eggs are of very
good flavor, and both natives and colo
nists are very fond of them.
trust you will eat your Thanksgiving
turkey with greater relish from knowing
something of his forefatners and cousins.
- JVide-Atoake.