7 Different Types Of Poultry Birds
Chickens, turkeys, and ducks are the most popular dishes served during celebrations. Chicken, ducks, and turkeys are the most common types of poultry birds people know about and consume worldwide.
But why? The reason is clear, it’s because they are known poultry birds although there are other poultry birds. This leaves you with a thought in your mind, “are their other types of Poultry Birds?
In this post, we are going to be discussing 7 different types of poultry birds. I believe that after reading this post, your Thanksgiving and Christmas table will have more mouthwatering dishes.
7 Different Types Of Poultry Birds
1. Turkey
The first type of poultry bird on this list is Turkey. Turkey is the largest poultry bird. It was first raised by the pre-Aztec people around south-central Mexico after World War II. Turkeys are most consumed by Israel, the USA, China, Canada, and of course, Mexico.
Modern turkeys are descendants of Meleagris gallopavo, the wild turkey. Turkeys also lay eggs like Chickens although not popularly sold. Turkeys produce 45 poults annually and they hatch in 28 days. And their meats are the best for rice during Christmas and wines during Thanksgiving. They are mostly killed for consumption during these celebrations. Turkey has a life span of 10 years.
In size, the males are bigger than the females, weighing (5 – 11 kg) and (2.5 – 6 kg) respectively.
Classes of Turkeys
- Roaster – Turkeys under 16 weeks
- Hens – female Turkeys around 21 weeks
- Tom – Turkeys of 52 weeks
- Mature- Turkeys of over 65 weeks
2. Chickens
The name chicken rings a familiar bell in every ear. When you hear chicken, you remember Christmas, Thanksgiving, and weddings. Chickens are the most popular types of poultry birds on the planet.
Presently, there are 7000 breeds of chicken worldwide, having most of the commercial breeds based on the genetics of Western breeds like Cornish and Plymouth Rock, and Rhode Island Red.
The common breeds of chickens in Nigeria are the Fulani Ecotypes, Forest Savannah(Yoruba) Ecotypes, and Rhode Island red and white cornish rock.
Popular breeds of Chickens in the world
- Australorp
- New Hampshire red
- Russian Orloff
- Rhode Island Red
- Orpington
- Ancona
- Sussex
- Leghorn and
- Appenzeller spitzhauben
Classes of Chickens
- Old rooster: males chickens over one year of age
- Young rooster: male chicken under one year of age
- Hen: Female Chicken over one year
- Pullet: A female chicken under one year of age
Chickens are multipurpose, they are kept for meat, eggs, and feathers. Layer chickens start laying from 16 – 26 weeks depending on the breed. Chickens layover 240 eggs annually.
Read Also: How to Start Poultry Farming Business
3. Ducks
The third type of poultry bird we will be looking at is The Duck. Ducks are water birds like geese and swans
Ducks are smaller than geese and swans, weighing over 0.72kg and 1.6kg. They are commonly raised in England, the Netherlands, and the USA.
Ducks are multipurpose and reared for their eggs, meat, and feathers. Ducks lay over 300 eggs yearly.
There are 40 breeds of Ducks, having Cayuga, Call, Campbell, Pekin, and Indian Runon Muscovy as the popular species.
Types of Ducks
- Eider
- Scoter
- Teal
- Sea duck
- Whistling duck
- Diving duck
- Dabbling duck
- Stifftail
- Golden eye
- Merganser
- Perching duck
- Domestic duck
4. Guinea Fowl
Guinea fowl also called Pintade, Pearl hen, or Gleany is one among the different types of poultry birds. Originating from West Africa, the Guinea fowl has 8 species.
The domesticated Guineafowl is from the helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris). They are known for their vocal features. The Vulturine Guineafowl is the largest type of Guinea fowl.
Guinea fowls are mostly reared in Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, France, Belgium, and Italy. Guinea Fowl are raised for ornaments and meat. They are also reared for security Guinea Fowl lays eggs an average of 100 eggs yearly and hatch them within 28 days. They can also be crossed with chickens
Common breeds of Guinea fowl
- White-breasted guinea fowl
- Black guinea fowl
- Plumed guinea fowl
- Crested guinea fowl
- Vulturine guinea fowl
- Numida meleagris
The uniqueness of guinea fowl is their drier meat, and smaller eggs, and their young ones are called Keets.
5. Quail
Quail is one of the types of poultry birds. Quails are mid-sized birds classified among game birds in the families of Phasianidae and Odontophoridae. China is the world’s largest producer of quail meat.
Quails are reared for meat & egg production, they lay 200 eggs annually, live for 3-5 years and weigh 0.096kg. They feed on insects, seeds, leaves, and berries. There are 130 species and the common species are:
- British Range quail
- English quail
- Japanese quail (Coturnix)
- Ornamental quail
- Gambel’s quail
- Italian quail
6. Pigeon
The last type of poultry bird we will discuss in this list is Pigeon. They are also called squabs and are raised for sports and meat consumption, and even hobbies.
pigeons are from the same family as Doves and they weigh 2.1kg and have a lifespan of 6 years. They lay 32 eggs yearly.
Types of Pigeon
- Fliers
- Fancy breed
- Utility breed
7. Geese
Geese are one of the types of poultry birds. They are aquatic animals. Grey geese are the most common breed.
Geese are of two categories, Anser and Branta. Geese are the first set of Poultry birds to be domesticated. Greylag goose was first raised in Europe, west, and East Africa. The Swan goose was first raised in eastern Asia and is also called the Chinese goose.
They are used for meat, eggs, and feathers. Geese lay over 60 eggs annually. Surprisingly geese were raised in Egypt over 300 years ago. The male geese weigh 5.2 kg the and females weigh 4.8kg. Geese age for 31 years.
Most Common breeds
- Embden
- Lands
- Toulouse
- Kuba
- Huoyan
- Czechoslovakian white
Conclusion
There are many other types of poultry birds outside chicken, turkey, and duck. We have others like Geese, Quail, pigeons, and our very own guinea fowl. Poultry is the best for celebrations. Therefore from the knowledge from this post think beyond the normal.
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