Turkey Farming
- 8 years ago
The domesticated turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) is a large poultry bird, one of the two species in the genus Meleagris and the same as the wild turkey. Although turkey domestication was thought to have occurred in central Mesoamerica at least 2,000 years ago,[1] recent research indicates a distinct domestication event in the Southwestern United States between 200BC- AD 500.
Turkey meat is a popular form of poultry, and turkeys are raised throughout temperate parts of the world, partially because industrialized farming has made it very cheap for the amount of meat it produces. Female domesticated turkeys are referred to as hens and the chicks may be called poults or turkeylings. In the United States, the males are referred to as toms, while in Europe, males are stags.
The great majority of domesticated turkeys are bred to have white feathers because their pin feathers are less visible when the carcass is dressed, although brown or bronze-feathered varieties are also raised. The fleshy protuberance atop the beak is the snood, and the one attached to the underside of the beak is known as a wattle.
The English language name for this species is the result of an early misidentification of the bird with an unrelated species which was imported to Europe through the country of Turkey.
Behaviour:
Young domestic turkeys readily fly short distances, perch and roost. These behaviours become less frequent as the birds mature, but adults will readily climb on objects such as bales of straw. Young birds perform spontaneous, frivolous running ('frolicking') which has all the appearance of play. Commercial turkeys show a wide diversity of behaviours including 'comfort' behaviours such as wing-flapping, feather ruffling, leg stretching and dust-bathing. Turkeys are highly social and become very distressed when isolated. Many of their behaviours are socially facilitated i.e. expression of a behaviour by one animal increases the tendency for this behaviour to be performed by others. Adults can recognise 'strangers' and placing any alien turkey into an established group will almost certainly result in that individual being attacked, sometimes fatally. Turkeys are highly vocal, and 'social tension' within the group can be monitored by the birds’ vocalisations. A high-pitched trill indicates the birds are becoming aggressive which can develop into intense sparring where opponents leap at each other with the large, sharp talons, and try to peck or grasp the head of each other. Aggression increases in frequency and severity as the birds mature.
See Also in Bangladesh:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arAMHwSzkrQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0O4oTKVEV-4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSBfT24ORUk
Turkey meat is a popular form of poultry, and turkeys are raised throughout temperate parts of the world, partially because industrialized farming has made it very cheap for the amount of meat it produces. Female domesticated turkeys are referred to as hens and the chicks may be called poults or turkeylings. In the United States, the males are referred to as toms, while in Europe, males are stags.
The great majority of domesticated turkeys are bred to have white feathers because their pin feathers are less visible when the carcass is dressed, although brown or bronze-feathered varieties are also raised. The fleshy protuberance atop the beak is the snood, and the one attached to the underside of the beak is known as a wattle.
The English language name for this species is the result of an early misidentification of the bird with an unrelated species which was imported to Europe through the country of Turkey.
Behaviour:
Young domestic turkeys readily fly short distances, perch and roost. These behaviours become less frequent as the birds mature, but adults will readily climb on objects such as bales of straw. Young birds perform spontaneous, frivolous running ('frolicking') which has all the appearance of play. Commercial turkeys show a wide diversity of behaviours including 'comfort' behaviours such as wing-flapping, feather ruffling, leg stretching and dust-bathing. Turkeys are highly social and become very distressed when isolated. Many of their behaviours are socially facilitated i.e. expression of a behaviour by one animal increases the tendency for this behaviour to be performed by others. Adults can recognise 'strangers' and placing any alien turkey into an established group will almost certainly result in that individual being attacked, sometimes fatally. Turkeys are highly vocal, and 'social tension' within the group can be monitored by the birds’ vocalisations. A high-pitched trill indicates the birds are becoming aggressive which can develop into intense sparring where opponents leap at each other with the large, sharp talons, and try to peck or grasp the head of each other. Aggression increases in frequency and severity as the birds mature.
See Also in Bangladesh:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arAMHwSzkrQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0O4oTKVEV-4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSBfT24ORUk