Narrangansett

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 7-13kg. Hen from 3.5-8kg.

THE NARRAGANSETT

COLOUR OF MALE

Head : Red, changeable to bluish white. Beak : Horn. Eyes: Brown. Throat-Wattles : Red, changeable to bluish White.

Neck : Unexposed part of feather black, the exposed surface of each feather steel grey approaching white, terminating in a narrow, black band across the feather; the band increasing in width as the back is approached.

Wings: Fronts and bows, light steel-gray ending in a narrow band of black; coverts, a light steel-gray, forming a beautiful broad steel-gray band across wings when folded, feathers terminating in a distinct black band, forming glossy, ribbon-like mark, which separates them from secondaries, primaries, each feather, throughout its entire length, alternately crossed with distinct, parallel black and white bars of equal width, running straight across feathers ; flight coverts, barred similar to primaries ; secondaries, alternately crossed with distinct parallel black and white bars, the black bar taking on a light steel-gray cast on the shorter top secondaries, the white bar becoming less distinct; an edging of brown in secondaries being very objectionable.

Back: Rich, metallic black free from bronze cast; saddle, black, each feather ending in a broad, steel-gray band approaching white, the light band increasing in width as the tail-coverts are approached.

Tail: Main tail dull black, each feather regularly penciled with parallel lines of tan, ending in a broad band of metallic black, free from bronze cast, edged with steel-gray approaching white; coverts and lesser coverts, dull black, each feather regularly penciled with parallel lines of tan, having a wide band of metallic black, free from bronze cast, extending across it near the end, terminating in a wide edging of light steel-gray approaching white.

Breast: Unexposed part of each feather black, ending in a broad, light steel-grey band which becomes darker as the underbody is approached; each feather ending with a distinct black band, narrow at the throat and becoming wider at lower breast.

Body and Fluff: Body, feathers dull black, ending with a distinct wide band of white. Fluff, black, terminating in white. Undercolour in all sections very dark slate.

Legs and Toes: Lower thigh intense black edged with light steel grey. Shanks and toes in mature specimens deep salmon; in young specimens dark approaching salmon.

COLOUR OF FEMALE

Similar to that of the male in all sections except that the plumage on back should end with a distinct white edging of medium width; the black edging terminating at cape, and breast gradually changing to a white edging, which gradually widens as it approaches the rear.

Disqualifications Wings showing one or more primary or secondary feathers clear black or brown, except key feathers in young birds, or absence of white or gray bars more than one-half of the length of primaries ; white or gray bars showing on main tail feathers beyond greater main tail coverts, except terminating wide edging of white. Entire absence of black bands on greater tail coverts.

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.