Tom or Hen?

[chickenmomma16]

Please explain what makes a bronze turkey a hen or tom. I thought I knew but maybe explain a little more detail? If I can't figure this out I may as well stick with my chickens. I thought sexing them had to do with the feather tip color but I think I was wrong about this one...

 

[turkeyguy123]

I'd say it's a Tom. Hens don't have a snood that large.

 

[honda150]

100% hen breast feathers are laced with white and feathers going up the back of the neck.

 

[turkeyguy123]

100% hen breast feathers are laced with white and feathers going up the back of the neck.

how do you explain the snood and carnacles?

 

[honda150]

I started out with bbb last spring and 2 out of the 3 would strut and get all red in the neck and carnucles would swell snoods would grow.But one thing everyone told me was look at the breast feathers,i swore they were toms.the breast feathers were laced with white.They were right i am 100% percent that this bronze is a hen.

 

[chickenmomma16]

I'd say it's a Tom. Hens don't have a snood that large.

100% hen breast feathers are laced with white and feathers going up the back of the neck.

Yeah, thats about where I'm at...



Here is a couple more pictures. Excuse the chickens, the turkey in question is in the center. I know the Burbon Red is a tom and the other Bronze is a hen and they came from the same place. The turkey inquestion mysteriously showed up and acts like a tom AND hen... must be a very confused turkey. It also looks like a male AND female to me like a 50/50 male characteristics and female characteristics.

 

[chickenmomma16]

I started out with bbb last spring and 2 out of the 3 would strut and get all red in the neck and carnucles would swell snoods would grow.But one thing everyone told me was look at the breast feathers,i swore they were toms.the breast feathers were laced with white.They were right i am 100% percent that this bronze is a hen.

Have you ever seen a hen sit on top of another hen?

 

[Celie]

Looks like a hen to me, the tell is the feathers on the back of the neck. I can tell by this on mine before anything else, Holland Whites are all White feathered, so there is no difference in feathering coloring to tell sex.

 

[chickenmomma16]

Looks like a hen to me, the tell is the feathers on the back of the neck. I can tell by this on mine before anything else, Holland Whites are all White feathered, so there is no difference in feathering coloring to tell sex.

Celie,
You told me about the feathers going up the back of the neck when I first aquired this turkey. Then someone else said to look for the white feather tips. This turkey has both of these and I have never heard it gobble, only quiet little peeps and one time I heard "It" sound an alarm from the roof top.

The reason I question th sex of this bird is because I have seen "It" posture with the Burbon Red for quite a while a couple of times. The snood does not get very big though, doesnt get past the beak. But I have seen the colors flash of the head. The other day I looked out my window only to find this "hen" on top of my new/younger FOR SURE hen. It was all puffed up and not doing a very good job finding the target. The Burbon Red FOR SURE tom simply walked over to the poor hen laying down, knocked the "It" Bronze off and did the deed.

This was the best picture I could find of the back of the back of the head.

 

[chickenmomma16]

Tom - 1
Hen - 2
Anyone else?