Z72 



Bulletin 258. 



observed to molt. They then shed all their feathers and assumed 

 a more mature dress, the pullets apparently getting their full 

 plumage. They lost their chick voice, developed bright red combs, 

 and, to all appear- 

 ances, were about 

 to begin to lay. 

 The rotation of 

 this molt was 

 nearly the same 

 as the rotation of 

 featheri n'g i n 

 chicks, the oldest 

 feathers being shed 

 first. The wing 

 and tail feathers, 

 which were the 

 first to appear on 

 the chick, were, 

 however, retained 

 until the bird was ^ 

 well along in the 

 molt, and in many 

 cases were not all 

 shed until after the 

 body molt was 

 completed. The 

 time of molting 

 the flights and tail 

 feathers varied in 

 different individ- 

 uals, but these 

 feathers were 

 usually shed in 

 pairs, one on each f 

 wing or corre- 

 sponding feathers 

 on each side of 

 the tail, as the ^ 



° V 6' piG_ y_ — Feather tracts tn chick of White Leghorn at 



12 and cover cut). ^ weeks.— Side view: a, keel; b, breast; c, neck; d, 



The first tail feath- back; e, tail; f, leg. 



