Bourbon Red

Origin:   America

Category:  Forest and Field

Egg Colour:  Speckled

Sitter:  Yes

The Turkey is native to North and Central America. They have been used primarily as a table bird and are popular all around the world. In modern times a larger and meatier commercial turkey is primarily produced for the table and the historic domestic colour varieties are kept by poultry fanciers and hobbyists.

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
Head long, broad, and carunculated (covered with fleshy protuberances). Beak strong and curved. Eyes bold. Throat Wattle large and pendent.

Neck long and curved back towards the tail, the top and most of the front carunculated.

Body long, deep through the centre, and well rounded; broad and full breast; the cock's beard long, bristling, and prominent; somewhat curving back rising from the neck to the centre and descending in a graceful curve to the tail; large and powerful wings carried well up and closely to the side ; long and drooping tail, the end almost touching the ground.

Legs long. Shanks stout and strong. Toes straight and powerful.

Carriage stately and upright.

Plumage hard and glossy.

Approx Weight Cock from 7-11.5kg. Hen from 3.5-7kg.

THE BOURBON RED

Bourbon Red by Schilling from the American Poultry Standard

COLOUR OF MALE

Head : Red, changeable to bluish white. Beak : Light horn at tip, darker at base. Eyes: Dark Brown. Throat-Wattles : Red, changeable to bluish white. Neck : Rich, dark, chestnut mahogany. Beard: Black.

Wings : Fronts, bows, and coverts, rich dark chestnut mahogany; each feather having a very narrow edging of black ; primaries and secondaries, pure white. Back: Rich, dark chestnut mahogany ; each feather from point of shoulders to base of main tail, having a very narrow edging of black. Tail: Pure White, with a dimly outlined bar of soft red crossing each main tail feather near the end ; coverts deep brownish red. Breast: Rich dark chestnut mahogany, feathers having a very narrow edging of lustrous black. Body and Fluff: Body, deep, brownish red ; each feather edged with a very fine line of black; fluff, a lighter shade of brownish red.

Legs and Toes: Lower thighs, dark chestnut mahogany; shanks and toes, reddish pink in adults ; deep reddish horn in young.

Under-colour of all Sections: Red, shading a light salmon at base.

COLOUR OF FEMALE

Similar to that of male, except there is no black edging in any section. On the breast each feather has a narrow thread-like edging of white.

Disqualifications More than one-third any other colour than white showing in either primaries, secondaries, or main tail feathers.

SERIOUS DEFECTS

• Wry tail;

• Crooked breast bone;

• Any other deformity.

• In the Black, feathers of any other colour; cocks less than 20 lb., and hens less than 12 lb.

• In the Bronze, white feathers in any part, clear brown or black wings or minus white or grey bars more than one-half the length of the primaries, clear black, brown or grey back tail or tail-coverts ; cocks less than 30 lb., and hens less than 18 lb.

• In the White, any coloured feathers, other than white or pink-white legs; cocks less than 20 lb., and hens less than 12 lb.

SOURCES

• The Poultry club standards, containing a complete description of all the recognised varieties of fowls, ducks, geese and turkeys, ed. by William W. Broomhead. https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/009202629

• Extra information on turkeys can be found in 'Raising Turkeys' available for download at this link. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/24191#/summary

• The American standard of perfection, illustrated. A complete description of recognized varieties of fowls, as revised by [the Association at its 62d-67th annual meetings, 1937-42.] https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/009169004

• The Australian Poultry Standards 2nd Edition.