(24 



THE GARDEN AND FIELD. 



February, 1914 



Poultry Notes # 



Breeds of Turkeys. 



— Black Norfolks and White 

 Hollands. — 



Tlu' Mexican turkey, whilst it cannot 

 be termed black, for there is a con- 

 siderable amount of brown in the plum- 

 age, is decidedly dark in color, and has 

 a constant tendency— as, in fact, have 

 the Bronze — to black feathers, more es- 

 pecially under new conditions. As then 

 was no other species or race with which 

 the early imported turkeys could Ijc 

 crossed, we can but suggest that the 

 tendency already mentioned explains 

 the origin of the Black Turkeys, which 

 are widely distributed over the greater 

 part of Europe. It is more than prob- 

 able that the earliest importations were 

 dark in plumage; perhaps even selec- 

 tion for that color had been followed 

 in Central America before the discovery 

 of that country; or at an early period 

 the superiority of the black turkey in 

 flesh qualities, as is the case to-day to 

 a large extent, was recognised, leading 

 to choice of specimens of that color for 

 Ijrcfding; or the evident predilection ot 

 the Spaniards, as seen in their races of 

 fowls, for black-plumaged poultry, ma\ 

 have had an important influence in 

 making turkeys of that hue almost uni- 

 versal throughout European countries. 



Mr. E. Brown, of England, gives tlic- 

 f(jllowing history of the breed: — In the 

 absence of any defmite information as 

 to the distribution of black turkeys dur- 

 ing the past centuries, facts must be 

 accepted as tliej' now are. Senor Cas- 

 tello says that the lilack variety is 



Bqas! Bqqs! 



.Sittinf,'s from Heavy Layinjj 



White Leqhorns 

 Black Leghornsg 

 Black Orpingtons 

 SilverWyandottes 



\i> I'^ggs to each setting. Guaranteed 

 fertile or replaced. 10/6 per setting 



T. E. YELLAND, 

 S.A. Fftnneri' Co-Op. Union, Ltd. 



chiefly found in Andalusia and Castile. 

 In Northern France many of the tur- 

 keys are black. At one time through- 

 out East Anglia what were called tlie 

 Black Norfolk were coVnmon, and evi- 

 dently had been bred there for a very 

 long period. Their place has been taken 

 by the American bronze, due to the 

 greater size and vigor 'of the last-named 

 breed. In other Continental countries 

 than those already named blacks are 

 very general, more especially in Ger-' 

 many, Austria, Hungary, and the Bal- 

 kan States. These are often called 

 bronze, but personal observations have 

 shown that they are much more nearly 

 allied to the black than to the bronze 

 American. Eastern European turkeys 

 are, as a rule, much smaller in size than 

 those found in western countries and in 

 America, and it would appear that 

 diminution of size has been greater the 

 further the species has travelled from 

 its natural habitat. 



It is generally admitted that the black 

 turkey is one of the finest for the table 

 qualities, yielding a large amount of 

 beautifully white, soft flesh, and is very 

 line in flavor, whilst its lightness of 

 bone is a distinct advantage. These — 

 as, in fact, all — qualities are due in 

 large measure to the conditions under 

 which they are produced. The finest 

 specimens of blacks have been met with 

 on the rich lands of Eastern Ehgland 

 and of Normandy, in France, where 

 soil, climate, and natural food are all 

 conducive to quality of flesh. In mid- 

 Europe they are smaller in size and not 

 so good in flavor of flesh, whilst in 

 South and South-Eastern Europe in 

 both directions there is a marked deteri- 

 oration. Of the blacks, the French arc 

 much thfc hardier, whilst the Norfolks 

 have almost become extinct, and where 

 found are delicate in constitution, prob- 

 ably due to inbreeding and the use of 

 immature birds for stock purposes. The 

 luns are good sitters and mothers and 

 lair layers. 



1 his race is long in body, which is 

 \cry deep from back to breast, and 

 massive, very full and round in front 

 with a broad back, which is curved, 

 liighest in the centre, but the stern is 

 always lower than the shoulders; the 

 neck is long and curved, carried well 

 back; the head is long and broad, and 

 what is known as carunculated, which 

 means that the head and upper part of 

 till' neck is bare of feathers, the skin 



wrinkled and formed into wart-like 

 elevations. From the base of the upper 

 mandible springs a fleshy protuberance 

 capable of elongation, with a few hairs 

 at the tip, and taking the place of a 

 comb, as seen in the domesticated fowl. 

 The head is blue on top and at back, 

 and face, wattles, and caruncle bright 

 red. The beak is stout and well curved, 

 dark horn in color; eye full and dark- 

 hazel ; the wattles are full, round, and 

 pouch-like; the wings are very large, 

 long, and powerful, carried low in the 

 male ; the tail of the male is very large, 

 and spreads out like a fan; that of the 

 female is long but compact; legs and 

 feet are stout and strong, but not heavy 

 in bone, and, with the toes, are long, in 

 color dark lead or slatey black. Weight 

 for fully-grown specimens: Males, 20 

 to 22 lbs.; females, 12 to 14 lbs. 



— White Holland Turkeys. — ' 



Given black plumaged birds as the 

 basis, it is quite easy to explain the 

 origin of the White Turkey, as there is 

 always a tendency by failure of pig- 

 ment to white in all black-feathered 

 birds. Many instances can be given of 

 such variations wifliin recent years, but 

 it is unnecessary to deal with them in 

 detail. Tegefmeier says: "It is well 

 known that most birds, wild as well as 

 tame, occasionally produce pe"fectly 

 white individuals of more delicate con- 

 stitution than the parents. There can 

 be no doubt that the selection and pair- 

 ing of such is the way in which the 

 breed of white turkeys has been estab- 

 lished and kept up." This writer men- 

 tions the frequent production of ticked 

 or speckled specimens in flocks of 

 Whites, and an American breeder, Mr. 

 Leland, says : "As to color I have never 

 seen a White Holland turkey that did 

 now show some black ticking in its 

 plumage during some period of its 

 life," which is a further evidence of 

 the origin. 



White Turkeys appear to have !)eeii 

 known for a long period of time, as 

 Moubray and other of the earlier wri- 

 ters refer to them, and the author states 

 that thty are said to have been origin- 

 ally imported from Holland. The 

 countries where they arc found arc 

 I''rance, Austria, and Hungary. In thq 

 South of France, more especially in 

 Languedoc, Provence, &c., they are al- 

 most exclusively kept, and are there 

 regarded as hardy and of fine quality. 

 Mr. Lewis Wright mentions that "the 

 Whites are often mentioned as Austrian 

 Whites — why, we do not know, as they 

 can be traced back in England for over 



