Turkeys are a popular poultry bird, especially around the holidays But do you know the proper terms for male, female, young, and groups of turkeys? Understanding turkey terminology can come in handy whether you’re raising turkeys, going hunting, or just expanding your knowledge In this article, we’ll explore the common names and interesting facts about young female turkeys.
Female Turkey Names
The most common name for an adult female turkey is a hen This term applies to domesticated and wild turkeys once they reach maturity, usually around 16 weeks old
Some key facts about hen turkeys:
- Weigh 8-15 pounds compared to males over 20 pounds
- Lay 7-10 eggs within 1-2 weeks in the spring
- Incubate eggs for 28 days before they hatch
- Make yelping and clucking sounds, not gobbles
- Build nests hidden on the ground
- Care for baby poults after hatching
So if you see a smaller, less colorful turkey, it’s likely a hen.
Young Female Turkeys: Jennies
Young female turkeys under 16 weeks old are called jennies. This name is used until they become mature hens.
Identifying a jenny can be tricky since young males and females appear similar. Here are some tips:
- Jennies may have smaller legs and feet
- Jennies tend to have a less noticeable snood and wattle
- Jennies make higher-pitched yelping sounds
Once a jenny survives to adulthood, she graduates to being called a hen. The term jenny is specific for adolescent females as they develop.
Interesting Turkey Facts
Here are some fascinating facts about turkeys that highlight their unique traits and behaviors:
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Wild turkeys can fly up to 55 mph over short distances and run 25 mph on the ground. Domestic turkeys are often too heavy to fly.
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The snood is the flap of skin that hangs over a turkey’s beak. The wattle is the flap under their chin. These change color based on the turkey’s mood.
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Male turkeys, called toms or gobblers, have beards of black, hair-like feathers on their breast. Some female turkeys do too.
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Hens make a clicking sound. Toms gobble loudly to attract mates in spring.
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Poults are newly hatched turkeys that stay close to their mother hen for protection their first weeks of life.
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The turkey’s gizzard contains tiny stones that help grind up food for digestion.
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Turkeys have great eyesight but a poor sense of smell. Their field of vision is 270 degrees.
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Benjamin Franklin wanted to make the wild turkey, not the bald eagle, the national bird of America.
Turkey Basics-Gobblers and Hens
Let’s begin with the basics of distinguishing male wild turkeys (gobblers) from females (hens).
Gobblers are larger-bodied birds, with a darker coloration, at times appearing almost black. In bright sunlight, their feathers cast a brilliant bronze or metallic iridescence. Gobblers have a featherless, red head (sometimes with blue and white coloring, too) with prominent wattle and fleshy, red growths (called caruncles) on their neck. They also have a “beard”—a tuft of black, hair-like strands—protruding from their chest.
On adult gobblers (called toms), the beard can be 7-9 inches or more in length, but on young gobblers (called jakes) the beard is <6 inches long. Typically, gobblers hang out away from hens during the summer since they take no part in raising young.
Hens are more brown in coloration and smaller in size than gobblers. They have a head that is more blue-gray in appearance, often with feathers continuing up the back of the head.
Occasionally hens will have a beard, but it is thinner than on gobblers and is quite often kinked. Hens can also have some feather iridescence, but not to the same extent as gobblers.
How many gobblers and hens do you see in this picture?
2 gobblers (both jakes, note the larger size, less-feathered red heads, and tiny stubble of a beard protruding from the chest of the jake on the right), 4 hens (one mostly hidden behind a jake, but you still can clearly see the typical head of a hen turkey poking out), 1 unknown. If we were here in person live, the birds would move about and we could probably determine that the unknown is another jake, but given what we can see in this photo, it’s best to just call this partially obstructed bird an unknown.
Poults develop very quickly (they must in order not to be eaten!) and feather types, appearance, and body size change rapidly as they age. Based on these characteristics, we can estimate the age of poults. For simplicity, we divide poults into three age classes.
1 week old or younger. Poults that are no more than about a week old are still covered with downy feathers and are very small (<5-6 inches tall). They look like little puff balls about the size of your fist.
Turkey Poult Class 1
2-5 weeks old. Poults in this class have grown longer wing feathers, but still are mostly covered with downy feathers on their body and still lack long tail feathers. They are about 6-10 inches tall, similar in size to a Blue Jay. In appearance, they look to be all wings (which is good because it means now they can fly into low trees to escape ground predators). Poults on the older end of this age class will have started to grow some juvenile plumage on their bodies, but still have short tail feathers.
Hen with class 2 age group poults
Hen with older class 2 age-group poult (borderline class 3)
Hen with class 2 age group poults
6-8 weeks or older. Poults early in this stage still have some down feathers occurring on the neck and head, but their body is covered with juvenile type contour feathers. They have visible tail feathers now, black-and-white barred wing feathers are emerging, and they stand about 10-12 inches tall, similar in size to a crow or a chicken. By about 8 weeks of age, poults are beginning to grow new “adult” looking body feathers and will have a mixture of juvenile feathers and adult feathers on their body. They are about half the size of the hen and will continue to grow to almost the same size as the hen by the end of the summer. Turkey Poults
Because they are very similar in size, late in the summer it can be very challenging to determine if a group of similar-sized turkeys is a flock of hens without poults or a hen and her older-age-class brood. If you’re unsure, it’s best to mark them as unknowns.
What Are Female Turkeys Called? – PickHunting.com
FAQ
What is the name of a young female turkey?
Farm Fact Friday: How many names can you call a turkey? A male turkey is called a Tom, a female a Hen, and a baby turkey is a Poult. A young male is called a Jake and a young female is a Jenny. And as a group, domesticated turkeys are commonly referred to as a Rafter.
Is a young female turkey called a jenny?
A male turkey is called a tom or a gobbler, a female turkey a hen, and a baby turkey a poult or chick. A young male turkey is called a jake and a young female is called a jenny.
What is a male or female baby turkey called?
A male turkey is. called a tom or gobbler. A. female turkey is called a hen. A baby turkey is called a poult.
What is the immature female name for turkey?
| A | B |
|---|---|
| Turkey Mature Female | Hen |
| Turkey Immature Female | Poult |
| Turkey Young | Chick |
| Turkey Group | Flock |
How do you call a female Turkey a hen?
You can call female turkey as a hen, male as gobbler or tom, young ones as chick, poult or turkeylings. For naming young males. Iake is a specific term whereas for young females use the term, Jenny. It is a common observation that female turkeys look like a hen. So, people call them a hen.
What is a baby turkey called?
A baby turkey is called a poult. A turkey poult is a young turkey that is less than 4 weeks old. *We get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Click here for more info about cookies collected and our privacy policy.
How do you know if a Turkey is a male or female?
Female turkeys, or hens, can be distinguished from males by a few key physical characteristics: Size – Hens are much smaller than male turkeys, called toms. They weigh 8-12 pounds compared to 15-25 pounds for males. Plumage – Hens have duller, brown-tipped feathers and lack the male’s colorful, iridescent plumage.
What is a 1 year old Turkey called?
Male turkeys under 1 year old are referred to as jakes. During the first year, they gradually develop the identifying characteristics of an adult tom. Some distinguishing traits of jakes include: With time and maturity, jakes grow into full-fledged toms with all the flashy plumage and loud gobbles.
Can you call a baby turkey a chick?
You can still call them a chick, but a more common name is a poult. It’s like the word poultry with the end cut off. Poult can be used for the babies of any domesticated fowl that’s being raised for food, like chickens or pheasants, but is used most frequently for baby turkeys.
Is a Turkey a chick or a Poult?
You can still call them a chick, but a more common name is a poult. It’s like the word poultry with the end cut off. Poult can be used for the babies of any domesticated fowl that’s being raised for food, like chickens or pheasants, but is used most frequently for baby turkeys. So What is a Group of Turkeys Called?