Auburn turkey
A rare heritage turkey with 18th-century origins.
The Auburn, also called the Light Brown, is a heritage turkey breed distinguished by its light reddish-brown plumage. It is one of the rarest turkey varieties currently in existence and has been documented in written records since the 18th century. An extremely rare variant, the Silver Auburn, also exists.
Quick Facts
- Alternative name
- Light Brown
- Plumage color
- Light reddish-brown
- Rarity status
- One of the rarest varieties in existence
- Variant
- Silver Auburn
Facts from the source article.
Did You Know?
- At day of age, the Auburn poult resembles the Bronze but has red-brown stripes instead of black stripes.
- In adult Auburn turkeys, the bronze pigmentation is replaced by a red-brown color.
- The barring on the primary and secondary flight feathers is red-brown and white, unlike the black and white barring of the Bronze.
History
This variety appears in receipts for turkeys transported to Philadelphia markets during late 18th- and early 19th-century turkey trots. Because the color is sex-linked, Auburn turkeys were important early in the 20th century for producing poults that could be sexed at hatching. Cross-breeding Auburn toms with Bronze hens yielded Bronze toms and Auburn hens, enabling easy color-based sexing of poults. However, this practice never became a serious market requirement, and the breed never gained wide popularity.
More in Conservation Priority Breeds of the Livestock Conservancy
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