The domestic turkey is a large fowl, one of the two species in the genus Meleagris and the same species as the wild turkey. Although turkey domestication was thought to have occurred in central Mesoamerica at least 2,000 years ago, recent research suggests a possible second domestication event in the southwestern United States between 200 BC and AD 500. However, all of the main domestic turkey varieties today descend from the turkey raised in central Mexico that was subsequently imported into Europe by the Spanish in the 16th century.
The Plymouth Rock is an American breed of domestic chicken. It was first seen in Massachusetts in the nineteenth century, and for much of the early twentieth century was the most popular chicken breed in the United States. It is a dual-purpose breed, raised both for its meat and for its brown eggs. It is resistant to cold, easy to manage, and a good sitter.
The Bourbon Red is a breed of domestic turkey named for its unique reddish plumage and for Bourbon County, Kentucky. The breed standard indicates that mature Bourbon Red toms (males) weigh 15 kilograms, and mature hens (females) weigh 8.2 kilograms. The breed standard indicates the Bourbon Red should weigh 10.4 kilograms for toms and 6.3 kilograms for hens at slaughter age. These standard weights were published with anticipation of the potential of the Bourbon Red and when the breed was at its prime. Though there are efforts to restore and accomplish the Bourbon Red standard, today these weights are realized by few breeders and growers. Bourbon Reds have been unrefined for too long due to the lack of selective breeding to preserve the breed. However, mature turkeys in a breeding flock will exhibit an intense fluctuate ~30% from these published weights due to their relentless, extensive and highly instinctive breeding season with their lowest weights typically being recorded in July.
The Magpie is a British breed of domestic duck. It has distinctive black and white markings reminiscent of the European magpie, and is a layer of large eggs.
The Buckeye is a breed of chicken originating in the U.S. state of Ohio. Created in the early 19th century, Buckeyes are the only standard breed recognized by the American Poultry Association (APA) that is known to have been developed by a woman. It is the only breed in the American Class to have a pea comb. Buckeyes are listed as "Watch" by The Livestock Conservancy. The breed's name is derived from Ohio's nickname of "Buckeye state". Their mahogany color is said ideally to resemble the seeds of the Ohio Buckeye plant. They are a dual-purpose chicken, known both for laying productivity and meat characteristics. Buckeyes are yellow-skinned chickens that lay brown eggs.
The Faverolles is a French breed of chicken. The breed was developed in the 1860s in north-central France, in the vicinity of the villages of Houdan and Faverolles. The breed was given the name of the latter village and the singular is thus also Faverolles, not Faverolle. Since the final “s” is silent in French, this is only necessary when writing the name.
The Delaware is a breed of chicken originating in the U.S. state of Delaware. It was once of relative importance to the U.S. chicken industry, but today is critically endangered. It is primarily suited to meat production but also lays reasonably well. It has plumage of a unique pattern, and is accepted into poultry standards for showing.
The Java is a breed of chicken originating in the United States. Despite the breed's name, a reference to the island of Java, it was developed in the U.S. from chickens of unknown Asian extraction. It is one of the oldest American chickens, forming the basis for many other breeds, but is critically endangered today. Javas are large birds with a sturdy appearance. They are hardy, and are well-suited for both meat and egg production, especially by small-scale farms, homesteads, and backyard keepers.
The Iowa Blue is a breed of chicken that originated near Decorah, Iowa in the early 20th century. Despite its name, the breed is not actually blue according to poultry standards. It is an exceedingly rare fowl, and is not recognized for showing by the American Poultry Association. They are a dual-purpose breed laying brown eggs and known to be good foragers.
The Royal Palm is a breed of domestic turkey. One of the few turkeys not primarily selected for meat production, the Royal Palm is best known as an ornamental bird with a unique appearance, largely white with bands of metallic black. Primarily kept as an exhibition bird, or on small farms, it lacks the size for large scale commercial use. Toms usually weigh 16 to 22 lbs and the hens 10 to 12 lbs.
The Pomeranian goose, also known as the Rügener goose, is a breed of domestic goose.
A heritage turkey is one of a variety of strains of domestic turkey which retains historic characteristics that are no longer present in the majority of turkeys raised for consumption since the mid-20th century. Heritage turkeys can be differentiated from other domestic turkeys in that they are biologically capable of being raised in a manner that more closely matches the natural behavior and life cycle of wild turkeys. Heritage turkeys have a relatively long lifespan and a much slower growth rate than turkeys bred for industrial agriculture, and unlike industrially bred turkeys, can reproduce without artificial insemination.
The Norfolk Black, also known as the Black Spanish or Black Turkey, is a British breed of domestic turkey. It is thought to derive from birds taken to Britain from Spain, where they had arrived with Spanish explorers returning from the New World.
The Slate, or Blue Slate, is a breed of domestic turkey known for the slate gray color of its plumage. Lighter birds are sometimes called Lavender turkeys. Turkeys of the Slate breed may actually be any number of shades between pure black and white, but only ash-gray birds are eligible for showing under the directive of the American Poultry Association’s ‘’Standard of Perfection’’, into which they admitted as a variety in 1874. Slate turkeys are listed as critically endangered by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, and meet the definition of a heritage turkey breed.
The Welsh Harlequin is a breed of domestic duck originating in Wales. In 1949, in Criccieth, Group Captain Leslie Bonnet discovered a colour mutation among his flock of Khaki Campbells and began selective breeding for the trait. By 1968, hatching eggs were exported to the United States, followed by the importation of live birds in 1981.
The Beltsville Small White is a breed of domestic turkey. The bird was named after its physical characteristics—a relatively small size and entirely white plumage—as well as its place of origin: the USDA's Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Maryland.
The White Holland is an old variety of domestic turkey known for its white plumage. The White Holland, whose connection to the Netherlands is unsubstantiated, originated from crosses of white European turkeys (re)imported to North America and crossed with native birds. The White Holland was first recognized by the American Poultry Association in 1874, and today is considered a heritage turkey breed. The breed was crossed in the 1950s with the Broad Breasted Bronze to create the Broad Breasted White, which is now the most common turkey breed in the world. They were also the base for creating the also rare Beltsville Small White breed.
The Buff or Jersey Buff is a breed of domestic turkey named for its buff-colored plumage.
Lavender or self-blue refers to a plumage color pattern in the chicken characterized by a uniform, pale bluish grey color across all feathers. The distinctive color is caused by the action of an autosomal recessive gene, commonly designated as "lav", which reduces the expression of eumelanin and phaeomelanin so that black areas of the plumage appear pale grey instead, and red areas appear a pale buff.
In poultry standards, solid white is coloration of plumage in chickens characterized by a uniform pure white color across all feathers, which is not generally associated with depigmentation in any other part of the body.
