Varieties are often confused with breeds. Only one breed, turkey, is recognized by the APA in its breed standard, the American Standard of Perfection. Currently, eight varieties of domestic turkeys are recognized by the American Poultry Association (APA). Many more exist as officially unrecognized variants or as recognized breeds in other countries.
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- APA varieties
| Variety | Year admitted by APA |
Type | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beltsville Small White | 1951 | Hybrid | Created by the USDA at Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Beltsville Maryland, Once very popular, it is now rare. |
| Black_(turkey) | 1874 | Heritage breed | Alternatively called Black Spanish Turkey or Black Norfolk Turkey. |
| Bourbon Red | 1909 | Heritage breed | |
| Bronze | 1874 | Heritage breed | The Broad Breasted Bronze, like the Broad Breasted White, are nonstandardized commercial strains that do not qualify as a variety. |
| Narragansett | 1874 | Heritage breed | |
| Royal Palm | 1977 | Heritage breed | Largely ornamental, mostly white. |
| Slate | 1874 | Heritage breed | Alternatively known as Blue Slate or Lavender. |
| White Holland Turkey | 1874 |
Other varieties or breeds not recognized by the APA include the following:
- Auburn or Light Brown is an extremely rare heritage breed; its numbers are not considered high enough for inclusion in the Standard. An extremely rare variant of the Auburn is called the Silver Auburn.
- Buff (or Jersey Buff) is a very rare heritage breed.
- Chocolate breed is chocolate brown in color. Day-old poults are white-faced with chocolate bodies.
- Czech Wild White-braided Turkey (Česká krůta divoká bíle lemovaná)
- Dindon rouge des Ardennes is a French breed, supposedly brought to Flanders in the 16th century from Mexico by the Spanish.
- Midget White is a rare heritage breed sometimes conflated with the Beltsville Small White.
- Zagorje (Zagorski puran) is a Croatian variant of turkey.
Famous quotes containing the words list of, list, turkey and/or breeds:
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—Polly Berrien Berends (20th century)
“Thirty—the promise of a decade of loneliness, a thinning list of single men to know, a thinning brief-case of enthusiasm, thinning hair.”
—F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940)
“In the land of turkeys in turkey weather
At the base of the statue, we go round and round.
What a beautiful history, beautiful surprise!
Monsieur is on horseback. The horse is covered with mice.”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)
“Surely the day will come when color means nothing more than skin tone, when religion is seen uniquely as a way to speak one’s soul; when birth places have the weight of a throw of the dice and all men are born free, when understanding breeds love and brotherhood.”
—Josephine Baker (1906–1975)