Object Status:
Extant
Accession Date:
By 1799
Primary Source Reference:
Charles Willson Peale, Lecture on Natural History 29. (ca. 1799). Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University Archives, coll. 40. / https://ansp.org/research/library/archives/0000-0099/coll0040/
Additional Source Text:
Charles Willson Peale (1741-1827) wrote, in his 29th Lecture (ca. 1799), after a description of the Helmeted Guineafowl Numida Meleagris: "But in No. 1094 & 1095, you behold a singular breed, which I was told is a mixture of the common fowl and Guinea hen – from the large size of them I should rather suspect that it was a mixture of the Turkey & Guinea fowl. There is a sufficiency of the externall dress of Guinea fowl in the plumage besides the drooping of the tail, to determine that part of the breed – but when living their notes were exactly the same. Some naturalists have thougt them an intire new species, but they did not consider, that we could not have such large birds and not discover them before this time. And these were bred on a farm at Cape Henlopen, the proprietor of which sold them to me." (Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University Archives, coll. 40)
Specimen Type:
Dead/preserved
Current Common Name:
Helmeted Guineafowl × Domestic Chicken hybrid
Current Scientific Name
Phasianidae | Numida meleagris × Gallus domesticus
