A distinguishing feature of both domesticated and wild
turkeys is the black fibrous hairs that hang down from the chest away from the
body plumage. Biologists and hunters
call those hairs beards. The beard on a
turkey isn’t hairy – rather it is made of fibrous feathers or tufts of
filaments.
Growing at three to five
inches a year a turkey's beard can be long enough to touch the ground. All male turkeys (gobblers) sport beards and
while it’s unclear precisely what their purpose is - a beard may help
differentiate birds or attract females.
About ten percent of females (hens) grow beards.
click on the bird for a better view
Their beards are much smaller and in no way
impact the hen’s ability to reproduce and raise their young.
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