The effect of gonadectomy on the secondary sexual characters of the Bronze turkey (M. gallopavo)

✍ Scribed by Scott, H. M. ;Payne, L. F.

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1934
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 833 KB
• Volume: 69
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0022-104X
• DOI: 10.1002/jez.1400690107

✦ Synopsis

h-cimsns Agric.crZtowi2 Exprriinerr t Stcttioir

FOUR PLATES (SEVEN FIGURES) TT';TT<ODTJCTION The literature regarding tlie cfl'ccts of goiiaclectomy npoii the secondary sexual characters of the turkey is coiifusing. Tiiasmuch as tlie published data arc not in complete harmony with the earlier ohscrvatioiis madc in 1929 by this station, a more extciisivc experiment was planned and compl 1933 to iiivestigatc the problem further.

Contrary to the viewpoint of Domm, Gnstavson, and Juhii as give11 iii 'Sex wiid Interiial Secretions,' Allcii ( ' 3 2 ) ' chapter 'Plumage test in birds,' the adult Rroiizc tiirliey has been observed by the authors of this papcr t o exhibit a marked degree of plumage dimorphism; in fact, so marked that as early a s the fourtceiith week one lias littlc tliffienlty ill recogniziiig the sexes. The juvenile pliimnge of either sex of the Kroiizc turkey is characterized hy a dull-blttcli ground color edged with grayish white, the shaft being sorncwhat in color than the web (fig. 1,:t,b). Sexual diffcrc 1)lnmage arc iiot appareiit during this period of devclopmeiit. The distiiiction between sexes becomes evicleiit \vlien the juvenile fcatliers arc replaced by tlie adult plumage. The transformation gciicrally starts at tlic twelfth ~vcck iii the breast region and from there progresses to other p i -t s of the body. The time required for iiidivitfuals to replace the juvcnile plii- mage completely may vary from 7 to 1 2 weeks.

Coiiti ihntioii 110. 81 fro111 the 1)cpartrnrnt of Poultrj tlushaiidiq-.