Galliformes - Game Birds

Chicken-like fowls constitute the order Galliformes. Order members include quail, grouse, pheasants, peafowl, guineafowl, and turkeys. These strong-legged, ground-inhabiting birds feed on seeds, berries, and other vegetable matter. Their wings are short and rounded, and flight is explosive but not prolonged. The young hatch fully covered in down, and they are able to run and feed. Also included in this order are the family of Chachalacas, guans, and curassows of the New World tropics. These species are unusual game birds in that they are primarily tree-dwellers. Of interest to those studying breeding biology are megapodes, the mound builders or brush turkeys of Australia. These long-tailed hen-like birds bury their eggs in decaying vegetation, in warm sand, or in volcanic soil. The parent birds are then free of the task of providing the temperature regulation necessary for incubation. The common game birds of North America are quail, grouse, ptarmigan, the Wild Turkey, and -- as far north as southern Texas -- the Plain Chachalaca. Other species, including pheasants, and partridges, have been introduced into North America for sport hunting.