in] Combs of Fowls 63 



Rose Comb. The next type to be taken into account is 

 the rose comb, which consists of a triangular mass of small 

 spikes or papillae. The apex of the triangle, called the 

 peak or pike, points backwards and is free from the head. 

 Such a comb is characteristic of Hamburghs, Rose-combed 

 Dorkings and many other breeds. A particular form of rose 

 comb with the pike curved downwards is a peculiarity of 

 Wyandottes. 



F^ from rose x single is rose. The dominance of the 

 rose comb is very definite, and it is generally quite im- 

 possible to distinguish pure rose from the heterozygous 

 type containing single. F z consists of the usual 3 rose : 

 i single. 



Rose x Pea. When a pure rose-combed bird is crossed 

 with a pure pea the resulting comb is very different from 

 either. It has no distinct papillae like the rose, or ridges 

 like the pea. In the newly hatched chick the region of the 

 comb is covered with a nearly flat or somewhat warty- 

 looking skin. At the beginning of the posterior third there 

 is generally a most curious band of bristles or hairs crossing 

 the comb. Some F^ birds have hairs scattered over the 

 posterior part of the comb, either with or without a definite 

 transverse band. The hairs usually increase in quantity 

 and definiteness as maturity approaches. It seldom happens 

 that a rose-pea ("walnut") bird has none of these hairs, 

 though with age they may get worn off. As the chicken 

 grows, the skin of the comb itself increases in size and 

 becomes more or less corrugated. Such corrugations may 

 become very large in males and are especially developed 

 anteriorly. In this region the comb is often widened so as 

 to form a lobe on each side, but the part behind the band 

 remains single, so that the whole comb has a 3-lobed appear- 

 ance when seen from above. One of the corrugations very 

 often appears as a furrow separating the flatter posterior lobe 

 from the anterior and more elevated part of the comb. It 

 is from the corrugated surface of this comb that it is called 

 by fanciers a " walnut " comb. The only pure breed in 

 which such a comb occurs is the Malay. In Fig. 13 the 

 hairs can be seen fairly well in the top left-hand bird, which 

 has light plumage. In the bird next to it the plumage is dark 

 and the band of hairs is not so distinct in the photograph. 



