Many people dont know the terminology of the animals they raise for 
parts of, age groups and what-have-you.. and I came across this and 
thought I would share.

Avian - Of, relating to, or characteristic of birds; derived from 
birds. 

Bantam - A small miniature chicken, usually one-fourth to one-fifth 
the size of regular chickens; frequently called "bantie." Most, but 
not all, bantams are the likeness of a larger variety of domestic 
chickens. 

Breed - A group of chickens within a class having a distinctive body 
shape and the same general features and weight. 

Broiler or fryer - A young meat-type chicken, usually 9 to 12 weeks 
of age, of either sex, that can be cooked tender by broiling or 
frying, usually weighing between 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 pounds. 

Class - A group of chickens that has been developed in a particular 
region of the world. 

Cock - A male chicken over one year of age; also called cock bird 
and old rooster. 

Cockerel - A male chicken under one year of age; also called young 
rooster. 

Crossbred - The offspring of parents of different varieties or 
breeds. 

Gallus domesticus - The domestic chicken. 

Gallus gallus - The Red Jungle Fowl; also called gallus bankiva. 

Genus - A group of closely related animals or plants which differ 
from one another in only slight characteristics. 

Hen - A female chicken over one year or age. 

Inbred - The offspring of closely related parents; resulting from 
inbreeding. 

Incrossbred - The offspring from crossing inbred parents of the same 
or different breeds. 

Layers - Mature female chickens kept for egg production; also called 
laying hens. 

Pullet - A female chicken under one year of age. 

Purebred - The offspring of purebred parents that are of the same 
class, breed, and variety. 

Roaster - A young meat-type chicken, usually 3 to 5 months of age, 
of either sex, that can be cooked tender by roasting, and usually 
weighing 4 pounds or over. 

Sexed chickens - Day-old chicks with the males and females 
separated. 

Started pullets - Female chickens that are partially grown, usually 
to point of lay that is about 20 weeks of age, by specialized 
growers for sale to egg farmers. 

Straight-run chicks - Day-old chicks that have not been separated 
according to sexes. 

Strain - A group of birds within a variety that has been bred by one 
person or firm for some time and has more or less uniform 
characteristics and capabilities. 

Strain cross - The offspring of parents of two or more different 
strains belonging to the same variety. 

Stewing chicken - A mature female chicken, usually more than 10 
months of age; that requires moist, pressurized, or extended 
cooking; also called hen or fowl. 

Variety - A subdivision of a breed, distingushed by color, color 
pattern, or kind of comb. 

Words about the anatomy of chickens
Beak - The bird's bill; the protruding mouthpart of a bird. 

Cloaca - The vent or common opening in birds through which the 
intestinal, urinary, and reproductive tracts empty. 

Comb - The fleshy, red outgrowth on top of a chicken's head; there 
are eight types of combs. 

Earlobes - The fleshy patch of bare skin below the ears varying in 
size and shape with the color red, white, blue, or purple, according 
to the breed. 

Gizzard - An internal organ of birds. It has thick muscular walls 
and a tough lining. It crushes and grinds foods by muscular action 
and with pebbles or grit. 

Infundibulum - The funnel end of the oviduct that picks up the yolk 
when it is released from the ovary; the area in which fertilization 
of the true egg takes place; also called funnel. 

Isthmus - The section of the oviduct next to the magnum where the 
water and mineral salts are deposited and the inner and outer shell 
membranes are formed. 

Magnum - The section of the oviduct next to the infundibulum; the 
area in which the thick white is deposited and the shape is formed. 

Ovary - The organ of the female which holds the true eggs and 
produces the yolks on which the true eggs are located. 

Oviduct - The organ of the female birds that puts the albumen, shell 
membranes, and the shell of the avian egg around the yolk. 

Ovum - The female germ cell; plural form is ova. 

Pituitary gland - A small kidney-shaped gland located at the base of 
the brain that produces hormones involved in sexual maturity, the 
maturation and release of yolks, and egg laying. 

Uterus - The section of the oviduct next to the isthmus where final 
portions of the white and minerals are deposited and shell and shell 
pigment are added. 

Vagina - The section of the oviduct next to the uterus in which the 
cuticle is deposited on the shell and the eggs are turned completely 
around on its long axis so that the large end is laid first. 

Wattles - The fleshy, red growths that hang from the side and base 
of the chicken's beak. 

Yolk sac - The follicle where an ovum and its surrounding yolk are 
held until the yolk matures and is released. 

Words about the avian egg 
Air cell - The air space between the two shell membranes, usually at 
the large end of the egg, that can be plainly seen when an egg is 
candled. 

Albumen - The white of an egg, consisting of outer thin, firm, inner 
thin, and chalaziferous layers. 

Avian egg - The mass of material constituting the bird egg - the 
shell, shell membranes, albumen, and yolk - that is designed by 
nature to nourish and protect the true egg. 

Blastoderm - A fertilized true egg. 

Blastodisc - A true egg that was not fertilized. 

Chalazae - The two whitish cords on opposite sides of the yolk that 
hold the yolk in the center of the albumen and serve as a rotating 
axis to keep the germ cell on the top side of the yolk and next to 
the heat of the hen's body. 

Cuticle - A secretion of the uterus consisting mainly of protein 
that serves to partially seal the pores in the egg's shell and acts 
as a lubricant when the egg is laid; commonly called the bloom. 

Egg - The microscopic cell of the female; the true egg; the female 
germ cell. 

Fertile - An egg that is fertilized; the capability of an egg to 
develop into a chick. 

Fertilization - The act or process of making or becoming fertile; 
the union of a male cell with a female cell. 

Infertile - An egg that is not fertilized, will not hatch. 

Shell - The hard outer surface of an egg made up largely of calcium 
carbonate; the shell has pores allowing loss of carbon dioxide and 
moisture from the egg. 

Shell membranes - Two thin membranes next to the shell and 
surrounding the albumen and yolk; known as inner and outer shell 
membranes; they are one of the egg's chief defenses against 
bacterial invasion. 

Sperm - The microscopic cell of the male; the male germ cell. 

Yolk - The round yellow mass upon which the true egg is located and 
that provides nutrients for the developing embryo. 


Words about incubation and embryology
Allantois - A sac connected to the emrbyo's abdomen making 
respiration by the embryo possible; it also stores excretions, 
absorbs albumen used for food by the embryo, and absorbs calcium 
from the egg shell for the structural needs of the embryo. 

Amnion - A transparent sac, filled with colorless fluid, surrounding 
the embryo; the amnion and amniotic fluid protect the developing 
embryo from shock and permit it to exercise. 

Broody hen - A hen that through hormonal changes has undergone 
marked changes in behavior and physiology, including cessation of 
laying and development of the maternal instincts. A hen that wants 
to sit on eggs to hatch them and to brood chicks. 

Chick tooth - A tiny, sharp, horny projection on the end of the 
chick's beak used by the chick to peck holes in the shell. Also 
known as egg tooth. 

Chorion - A membrane that surrounds both the yolk sac and the 
amnion; it has no apparent initial function but later fuses with the 
allantois to form the chorio- allantois membrane. 

Down - Soft, fine, hair-like feathers on young birds. 

Embryo - The developing chick within the egg. 

Embryology - The study of the formation and development of embryos. 

Extra embryonic membranes - Membranes outside the embryo's body that 
make respiration, nutrition, and secretion possible and provide 
protection; they include the yolk sac, amnion, allantois, and 
chorion. 

Fertility - The quality or state of being fertile. 

Hatchability - The quality or state of being hatchable. 

Humidity - The amount of moisture in the air in the incubator; 50 to 
55 percent relative humidity is ideal the first 18 days of 
incubation and about 65 percent the last three days. 

Incubation - The process of applying heat, either naturally or 
artificially, to eggs to cause them to hatch. 

Incubator - An artificially heated container for hatching eggs. In a 
still-air incubator the air is not circulated mechanically. Forced-
air incubators have a fan or fans to circulate the air. 

Pip - To break through or peck holes in the shell by the chick. 

Primitive streak - A vertical, opaque line where the embryo begins 
to grow and develop. 

Set - To put eggs under a broody hen or in an incubator to hatch 
them. 

Temperature - The level of heat in the incubator; can vary from 99 
degrees to 103 degrees F. 100.5 degrees F is optimum for a still-air 
incubator. 

Turn - The act of changing the position of eggs being incubated to 
prevent the embryos from sticking to the shell membranes. 


tenzicut - who made an "X" and turned her eggs 3x a day

