- Jul 2, 2011
- 344
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Hi members,
At my friend's farm, I studied the moults of a immature male bronze turkey and turkey chicks.
A immature male bronze domestic turkey shed primaries 1st (innermost) on 19th October 2011 and shed primaries 10th (outermost) on 1st February 2012.
Primaries 10th fully grown on 27th march 2012, took 160 days to renew 10 primary feathers.
A male turkey chick hatched on 25th October 2011, had shed juvenile tail 9th (outermost) on 15th February 2012 at age 113 days old and juvenile primaries 8th (outer) on 21st March 2012, at age 148 days old and shed the 241mm immature primary 1st (innermost) on 21st March 2012.
On 8th May 2012 this same male turkey chick had primary 8th have more 22 days to finish growing, take 70 days to regrow and fully grown on 30th May 2012 at age of 218 days old, and primaries 9th were 30mm from tip of immature primary coverts on 8th May 2012.
A turkey chick hatched on 25th January 2012, had shed 106mm juvenile primary feather 1st (innermost) on 12th March 2012, at age of 47 days old. The new 241mm immature primary feather, will take over. On 8th May 2012 this turkey chick had shed juvenile primary 7th and have juvenile primary 8th-10th remained.
These female turkeys that hatched on 25th October 2011, had shed the juvenile primaries 10th and on 8th May 2012 the growing primary 10th were 38mm to 50mm from skin, and had new 2nd immature secondaries 4th to 7th, and are longer & bigger than immature secondaries 8th to 20th.
To help ensure you know which female turkeys are adult and immature, you would band the turkeys (rings around legs).
Seems the days between shedding of primaries 1st and 8th, were 101 days, from 11th December 2011, at 47 days old, to 21st March 2012 at 148 days old.
Adult male wild turkeys take 180 days to renew all flight feathers.
An immature female shed primaries 1st on September 2011 and the same bird had 2/3 grown growing primaries 10th on 8th May 2012.
Both adult and immature female turkeys replaces 1-3 primaries (P.1st or P.1st to P.3rd), before the moults were stopped when turkeys start to breed, and when chicks are few weeks old the mother turkey restart to moult, by shed P.2nd or P.4th and moult finishes on June. Primaries fade from blackish brown, to dull brown.
Cheers
Clinton.
At my friend's farm, I studied the moults of a immature male bronze turkey and turkey chicks.
A immature male bronze domestic turkey shed primaries 1st (innermost) on 19th October 2011 and shed primaries 10th (outermost) on 1st February 2012.
Primaries 10th fully grown on 27th march 2012, took 160 days to renew 10 primary feathers.
A male turkey chick hatched on 25th October 2011, had shed juvenile tail 9th (outermost) on 15th February 2012 at age 113 days old and juvenile primaries 8th (outer) on 21st March 2012, at age 148 days old and shed the 241mm immature primary 1st (innermost) on 21st March 2012.
On 8th May 2012 this same male turkey chick had primary 8th have more 22 days to finish growing, take 70 days to regrow and fully grown on 30th May 2012 at age of 218 days old, and primaries 9th were 30mm from tip of immature primary coverts on 8th May 2012.
A turkey chick hatched on 25th January 2012, had shed 106mm juvenile primary feather 1st (innermost) on 12th March 2012, at age of 47 days old. The new 241mm immature primary feather, will take over. On 8th May 2012 this turkey chick had shed juvenile primary 7th and have juvenile primary 8th-10th remained.
These female turkeys that hatched on 25th October 2011, had shed the juvenile primaries 10th and on 8th May 2012 the growing primary 10th were 38mm to 50mm from skin, and had new 2nd immature secondaries 4th to 7th, and are longer & bigger than immature secondaries 8th to 20th.
To help ensure you know which female turkeys are adult and immature, you would band the turkeys (rings around legs).
Seems the days between shedding of primaries 1st and 8th, were 101 days, from 11th December 2011, at 47 days old, to 21st March 2012 at 148 days old.
Adult male wild turkeys take 180 days to renew all flight feathers.
An immature female shed primaries 1st on September 2011 and the same bird had 2/3 grown growing primaries 10th on 8th May 2012.
Both adult and immature female turkeys replaces 1-3 primaries (P.1st or P.1st to P.3rd), before the moults were stopped when turkeys start to breed, and when chicks are few weeks old the mother turkey restart to moult, by shed P.2nd or P.4th and moult finishes on June. Primaries fade from blackish brown, to dull brown.
Cheers
Clinton.
