Title: Molting and Growth of Individual Feathers in Turkeys Exposed to 10 or 24 Hours of Daily Light
Abstract: Mueller et al. (1951), observing Broad Breasted Bronze turkeys, found that restricting light to 12 hours daily from 4 to 16 weeks of age and to 10 hours daily from 17 to 28 weeks of age reduced molting of the first postjuvenile plumage. These birds, when dressed, exhibited fewer pin-feathers and had higher market grades than birds of the same age and origin reared under natural daylight or provided 15 hours of light daily. At 20 weeks of age, when the first classifications of body and wing molt were made, there were slight differences in wing molt among poults in pens receiving different amounts of light, and these differences increased between 20 and 28 weeks of age. No consistent between-treatment differences were observed in body molt until after 22 weeks of age. The present experiment was designed to provide more critical information on the progress of molting in body feathers …