List of turkey breeds
Varieties are often confused with breeds. Only eight breeds of turkey are recognized by the APA in its breed standard, the American Standard of Perfection. Also there are eight domestic turkeys that are recognized by the American Poultry Association (APA). Many more exist as officially unrecognized variants or as recognized breeds in other countries.
- APA varieties
| Variety | Year admitted by APA[1] |
Type | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beltsville Small White | 1951 | Heritage breed | Created by the USDA at Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Beltsville Maryland, Once very popular, it is now rare.[2] |
| Black | 1874 | Heritage breed | Alternatively called Black Spanish Turkey or Black Norfolk Turkey. |
| Bourbon Red | 1909 | Heritage breed | |
| Bronze | 1874 | Heritage breed | The Broad Breasted Bronze, like the Broad Breasted White, are nonstandardized commercial strains that do not qualify as a variety. |
| Narragansett | 1874 | Heritage breed | |
| Royal Palm | 1977 | Heritage breed | Largely ornamental, mostly white. |
| Slate | 1874 | Heritage breed | Alternatively known as Blue Slate or Lavender. |
| White Holland turkey | 1874 |
The only breed of turkey recognized by the EE in the European Standard of Perfection is the German Turkey. Currently, twelve varieties of domestic turkey are recognized by the European Association of Poultry, Pigeon, Bird, Rabbit and Cavia Breeders (EE). Other varieties with Standards of Perfection of European national associations are accepted.
- EE varieties[3]
| Variety (by National Standards) | Variety (colour) | country of origin | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Blue ( slate turkey) | gray/blue | USA | |
| American Bronze | Brown/Black bass color with white near some of the turkey's feather tips. | USA | |
| American Black | USA | Alternatively called Black Spanish Turkey or Black Norfolk Turkey. | |
| Beltsville Small White | white | USA | |
| Dindon du Bourbonnais | black | F | |
| Cambridge Bronze | GB | ||
| Deutsche Pute | D | with EE-Standard of Perfection | |
| Deutsche Pute | blue | D | |
| Bourbon Red | D | ||
| Bronze | D | ||
| Cröllwitzer | D | ≈Royal Palm (USA) | |
| Buff | D | ||
| Bronce | D | ||
| narragansett coloured | D | ||
| Red | D | ||
| Red Winged | D | ||
| Black | D | ||
| Black Winged Bronze | D | ||
| British white | D | ||
| French turkey (Dindon) | porcelan coloured | F | |
| Dindon du Gers | schwarz | F | |
| Tacchino castano d'Italia | I | ||
| Tacchino nero d'Italia | black | I | |
| Narragansett | USA | ||
| Norfolk Black Turkey | GB | ||
| Dindon de Ronquières | fauve | B | |
| à épaulettes jaunes | B | ≈Tricoloré du Colorado (F), ≈Sweetgrass (USA) | |
| jaspé | B | ≈Royal Palm (USA), ≈Cröllwitzer (EE) | |
| perdrix | B | ≈Krefelder Pute (D) | |
| White (blanc) | B | ||
| Royal Palm | black and white | GB | |
| Dindon rouge des Ardennes | B/F | a French breed, supposedly brought to Flanders in the 16th century from Mexico by the Spanish. | |
| Dindon de Sologne | black | F | |
| Czech turkey (Česká krůta) | Czech Wild White-braided Turkey (Divocezbarvené bíle lemované) | CZ | |
| šedědivocezbarvene bíle lemované | CZ | ||
| White Holland | USA | ||
| English Turkey | buff | E | |
Other varieties or breeds not recognized by the APA or EE include the following:
- Auburn or Light Brown is an extremely rare heritage breed; its numbers are not considered high enough for inclusion in the Standard. An extremely rare variant of the Auburn is called the Silver Auburn.
- Buff (or Jersey Buff) is a very rare heritage breed.
- Chocolate breed is chocolate brown in color. Day-old poults are white-faced with chocolate bodies.
- Midget White is a rare heritage breed sometimes conflated with the Beltsville Small White.
- Zagorje (Zagorski puran) is a Croatian variant of turkey.
See also
- Ocellated turkey a species of turkey residing primarily in the Yucatán Peninsula in Central America.
References
- ↑ "APA Recognized Breeds and Varieties" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-11-30.
- ↑ Ekarius, Carol (2007). Storey's Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds. Storey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-58017-667-5.
- ↑ "Listing Breed and Colour in the EE Standard". Archived from the original on 2013-06-16. Retrieved 2013-06-11.