View source for Biology:Bourbon Red

{{Short description|American breed of turkey}}
{{infobox poultry breed
| name          = Bourbon Red
| image         = Bourbon red turkey Tom-r2.jpg
| image_size    =
| alt           = 
| image_caption = Bourbon Red turkey tom
| status        = {{ubl|FAO (2007): not at risk{{r|barb|p=153}}|{{nobreak|Livestock Conservancy (2022): watch{{r|tlc}}}}|[[Organization:Rare Breeds Survival Trust|RBST]] (2023): priority{{r|rbst2}}|[[DAD-IS]] (2023): at risk/vulnerable{{r|dad}}}} 
| altname       = {{ubl|Bourbon Butternut|Bourbon Red Turkey|Kentucky Red|Canela (Uruguay)}}
| country       = United States
| distribution  = {{ubl|United States|Australia|Canada|Europe|United Kingdom|Uruguay}}
| standard      =
| use           = meat
| apa           = yes{{r|apa}} 
| aba           =
| ee            = yes{{r|ee}}
| pcgb          = yes{{r|pcgb}}
| maleweight    = {{convert|15|kg|lb|abbr=on}}{{r|ekarius||p=228}}
| femaleweight  = {{convert|8|kg|lb|abbr=on}}{{r|ekarius||p=228}}
| skincolor     = 
| eggcolor      = 
| comb          = 
| note          = 
| type          = [[Biology:Domestic turkey|turkey]]
| latin         = Meleagris gallopavo
}}

The '''Bourbon Red''' is an American breed of [[Biology:Domestic turkey|domestic turkey]]. It is named for its reddish-brown plumage and for its area of origin, Bourbon County, Kentucky, where it was developed in the last years of the nineteenth century. It was accepted into the ''Standard of Perfection'' of the American Poultry Association in 1909, and in the early twentieth century was an important commercial meat breed until the Broad Breasted White began to dominate industrial production.{{r|dohner|p=454|rbst}} The Bourbon Red is considered a heritage turkey; it is an endangered breed, classified as 'watch' by the Livestock Conservancy. It was formerly known as the '''Bourbon Butternut''' or as the '''Kentucky Red'''.{{r|slow2}}

== History ==

The Bourbon Red was bred in the Bluegrass Region of Kentucky in the late nineteenth century. The [[Biology:Selective breeding|breeding]] work is usually attributed to J.F. Barbee, and is thought to have been based on a particularly dark strain of Buff Turkey from Pennsylvania called the Tuscawara or Tuscarora Red, with some admixture of White Holland and Bronze stock.{{r|dohner|p=454|tlc}} It was initially called the Kentucky Red or Bourbon Butternut, but became better known once the name Bourbon Red was adopted.{{r|dohner|p=454}} It was accepted into the  ''Standard of Perfection'' of the American Poultry Association in 1909.{{r|tlc}}

In the early twentieth century it was marketed as suitable for commercial production, and soon supplanted the less productive Buff, which became rare and in 1915 was removed from the'' Standard of Perfection''. In the [[History:Interwar period|interwar period]] the Bourbon Red was widely reared, particularly as a farm bird in the Midwest, but numbers declined rapidly after the adoption of the Broad Breasted White for industrial production.{{r|dohner|p=454|tlc|rbst}}

In the twenty-first century numbers recovered and it has become the most numerous of the non-industrial heritage turkey breeds. In 1999 the Society for the Preservation of Poultry Antiquities found approximately {{val|1000}} birds, and in 2003 the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy (as it was then known) counted more than {{val|1500}}.{{r|dohner|p=455|ekarius|p2=228}} A United States population of {{val|2147}} was reported to [[DAD-IS]] for 2015, and in 2023 the world-wide population was estimated at {{val|3000}}.{{r|dad|dad2}} In 2022 the Livestock Conservancy listed the [[Biology:Conservation status|conservation status]] of the breed as 'watch'.{{r|tlc}} 

The Bourbon Red is included in the Ark of Taste of the international Slow Food Foundation.{{r|slow2}} It is recognized by the Entente Européenne in Europe, and by the Poultry Club of Great Britain.{{r|ee|allonby|p2=348|roberts|p3=337}} It is also reported from Australia, Canada and Uruguay.{{r|dad2}}

== Characteristics ==
[[File:Bourbon-Red-Turkey-Poult.jpg|thumb|Bourbon Red turkey poult]]

The Bourbon Red is a tall, high-breasted turkey, characterized by its deep mahogany-red body color. The wing primaries and secondaries are white, as are the main tail feathers.{{r|dohner|p=454}} The beak is dark at the base, lightening to a horn-colour at the tip. The shanks and feet are a deep reddish horn in young birds, becoming pink with maturity.{{r|tlc|rbst}}

The Livestock Conservancy lists an ideal weight of {{convert|32|lb|kg|disp=flip|abbr=on|0}} for mature toms (males) and {{convert|18|lb|kg|disp=flip|abbr=on|0}} for mature hens, while for young birds it gives weights of {{convert|23|lb|kg|disp=flip|abbr=on|0}} and {{convert|14|lb|kg|disp=flip|abbr=on|0}} respectively. As for many years there has been little or no [[Biology:Selective breeding|selective breeding]] for productive charactistics, many birds are likely to reach lower weights.{{r|tlc}}

== References ==
{{reflist|refs=


<ref name=allonby>J. Ian H. Allonby, Philippe B. Wilson (editors) (2018). [https://books.google.com/books?id=A6BtDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA489 ''British Poultry Standards: complete specifications and judging points of all standardized breeds and varieties of poultry as compiled by the specialist breed clubs and recognised by the Poultry Club of Great Britain''], seventh edition. Chichester; Hoboken, New Jersey: Wiley Blackwell. {{isbn|9781119509141}}.</ref>

<ref name=apa>[https://web.archive.org/web/20171104135004/http://www.amerpoultryassn.com/PDF%20Forms/APA%20Recognized%20Breeds%20and%20Varieties%20Sept2012.pdf APA Recognized Breeds and Varieties: As of January 1, 2012]. American Poultry Association. Archived 4 November 2017.</ref>

<ref name=barb>Barbara Rischkowsky, Dafydd Pilling (editors) (2007). [https://web.archive.org/web/20200623201209/http://www.fao.org/3/a1250e/annexes/List%20of%20breeds%20documented%20in%20the%20Global%20Databank%20for%20Animal%20Genetic%20Resources/List_breeds.pdf List of breeds documented in the Global Databank for Animal Genetic Resources], annex to [https://web.archive.org/web/20170110125634/http://www.fao.org/3/a-a1250e.pdf ''The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture'']. Rome: Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. {{isbn|9789251057629}}. Archived 23 June 2020.</ref>

<ref name=dad>[https://dadis-breed-datasheet-ext-ws.firebaseapp.com/?country=USA&specie=Turkey&breed=Bourbon%20Red&lang=en Breed data sheet: Bourbon Red / United States of America (Turkey)]. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed March 2023.</ref>

<ref name=dad2>[https://dadis-transboundary-ext-ws.web.app/?species=Turkey&transboundary=Bourbon%20Red&lang=en Transboundary breed: Bourbon Red]. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed March 2023.</ref>

<ref name=dohner>Janet Vorwald Dohner (2001). ''The Encyclopedia of Historic and Endangered Livestock and Poultry Breeds''. New Haven, Connecticut; London: Yale University Press. {{isbn|0300088809}}.</ref>

<ref name=ekarius>Carol Ekarius (2007). [https://archive.org/details/Storeys_Illustrated_Guide_to_Poultry_Breeds_Complete/mode/1up ''Storey's Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds'']. North Adams, Massachusetts: Storey Publishing. {{isbn|9781580176675}}.</ref>

<ref name=ee>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130616062803/http://www.entente-ee.com/deutsch/sparten/gefluegel/dateien/2013/Verzeichnis%20R%20F%2028042013.xls Liste des races et variétés homologuée dans les pays EE (28.04.2013)]. Entente Européenne d’Aviculture et de Cuniculture. Archived 16 June 2013.</ref>


<ref name=pcgb>[https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143235/http://www.poultryclub.org/img/Breed%20Classification.pdf Breed Classification]. Poultry Club of Great Britain. Archived 12 June 2018.</ref>

<ref name=rbst>[https://www.rbst.org.uk/bourbon-red Bourbon Red]. Kenilworth, Warwickshire: Rare Breeds Survival Trust. Accessed March 2023.</ref>

<ref name=rbst2>[https://web.archive.org/web/20220928145017/https://www.rbst.org.uk/Handlers/Download.ashx?IDMF=5ee279d9-48ec-411d-962d-2115212bc0be Watchlist 2022–23]. Kenilworth, Warwickshire: Rare Breeds Survival Trust. Archived 28 September 2022.</ref>

<ref name=roberts>Victoria Roberts (2008). [https://books.google.com/books?id=nAfyUHY42u0C ''British Poultry Standards: complete specifications and judging points of all standardized breeds and varieties of poultry as compiled by the specialist breed clubs and recognised by the Poultry Club of Great Britain''], sixth edition. Oxford: Blackwell. {{isbn|9781405156424}}.</ref>

<ref name=slow2>[https://www.fondazioneslowfood.com/en/ark-of-taste-slow-food/bourbon-red/ Bourbon Red Turkey: Ark of taste]. Bra, Cuneo: Fondazione Slow Food per la Biodiversità Onlus/Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity. Accessed March 2023.</ref>

<ref name=tlc>[https://web.archive.org/web/20221109153312/https://livestockconservancy.org/heritage-breeds/heritage-breeds-list/bourbon-red-turkey/ Bourbon Red Turkey]. Pittsboro, North Carolina: The Livestock Conservancy. Archived 9 November 2022.</ref>

<!---ref>''Turkey Management'' Marsden and Martin, fourth edition 1946 pp. 216–217</ref--->

}}

[[Category:Animal breeds on the RBST Watchlist]]

{{Sourceattribution|Bourbon Red}}