A comb is a fleshy growth or crest on the top of the head of some gallinaceous birds, such as domestic

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...

s. The alternative name cockscomb (with several spelling variations) reflects the fact that combs are generally larger on cock birds than on hens. The comb is one of several fleshy protuberances on the heads of chickens, the others being the wattles and earlobes, which collectively are called caruncles. In turkeys, the caruncles are the fleshy nodules on the head and throat. Chicken combs are most commonly red, but may also be black or dark purple in breeds such as the

Silkie The Silkie, also known as the Silky or Chinese silk chicken, is a Chinese breed of chicken named for its atypically fluffy plumage, which is soft to the touch, like silk or fur. Other unusual qualities include black skin and bones, blue earlob ...

or the Sebright. In other species the color may vary from light grey to deep blue or red. The comb may be a reliable indicator of health or vigor and is used for mate-assessment in some poultry species.

Types of chicken comb

Comb shape varies considerably depending on the breed or species of bird. Of the many types and shapes seen in chicken cocks the principal ones are: * the single comb, extending in a single line from the top of the base of the beak to the back of the head. It consists of a solid vertical part with a series of points or serrations; the size, shape and number of these and the overall shape of the comb are all variable, depending on the breed. * the cup comb or buttercup comb, as seen in the Sicilian Buttercup, a cup-shaped comb with spiked edges. * the cushion comb, as seen in the Chantecler and

, is a compact cushion-shaped mass covered with small protuberances, with a shallow transverse groove across it. * the horn comb or V-comb, as seen in breeds such as the Crèvecœur, La Flèche and

Sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

, with two spikes in a V shape starting above the beak, tapering to a point from a thick base. * the leaf comb or shell comb, as seen in the Houdan, which resembles a butterfly with partially-opened wings. * the pea comb or triple comb, somewhat like three small single combs in a row; seen in breeds including the

Araucana The Araucana () is a breed of domestic chicken from Chile. The name derives from the historic Araucanía (historic region), Araucanía region where it is believed to have originated. It lays blue-shelled eggs, one of very few breeds that do s ...

Brahma Brahma (, ) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity, Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 212– ...

, Buckeye, Indian Game,

Ixworth Ixworth is a village and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England, north-east of Bury St Edmunds on the A143 road to Diss and south-east of Thetford. The parish had a population of 2,365 at the 2011 Census. History Ix ...

, Malay,

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

among others. * the raspberry comb, as seen in the Orloff, which roughly resembles half a

raspberry The raspberry is the edible fruit of several plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the Rosaceae, rose family, most of which are in the subgenus ''Rubus#Modern classification, Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Ras ...

, cut lengthwise. * the rose comb, as seen in the

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

and Wyandotte, broad and fairly fast, covered with small pointed protuberances, with a long backwards-facing spike to the rear. * the strawberry or walnut comb, as seen in the Malay, which roughly resembles half a strawberry or walnut. In hens, the comb is usually smaller and neater than in the cock. There are three known genes affecting comb shape: Rose-Comb, Pea-Comb, and Duplex-Comb, which has one allele responsible for buttercup combs and another one responsible for V combs.

In cookery

Combs are used in

cookery Cooking, also known as cookery or professionally as the culinary arts, is the art, science and craft of using heat to make food more palatable, digestible, nutritious, or safe. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely, from grilling ...

, often in combination with wattles or chicken

kidney In humans, the kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped blood-filtering organ (anatomy), organs that are a multilobar, multipapillary form of mammalian kidneys, usually without signs of external lobulation. They are located on the left and rig ...

s. Combs were formerly used in

French cuisine French cuisine is the cooking traditions and practices of France. In the 14th century, Guillaume Tirel, a Court (royal), court chef known as "Taillevent", wrote ''Le Viandier'', one of the earliest recipe collections of medieval France. In ...

as garnishes. They were also used to prepare

salpicon Salpicon (, meaning "hodgepodge" or "medley"; ) is a dish of one or more ingredients diced or minced and bound with a sauce or liquid. There are different versions found in Spanish and the broader Latin American cuisine and Filipino cuisine. A sa ...

s served in

vol-au-vent A ''vol-au-vent'' (pronounced , French for "windblown", to describe its lightness) is a small hollow case of puff pastry. It was formerly also called a patty case. . A ''vol-au-vent'' is typically made by cutting two circles in rolled out p ...

profiterole A profiterole (), ''chou à la crème'' (), also known alternatively as a cream puff (US), is a Filling (cooking), filled French choux pastry ball with a typically sweet and moist filling of whipped cream, custard, pastry cream, or ice cream. Th ...

s, etc. in which they were often combined with other luxury ingredients such as

truffle A truffle is the Sporocarp (fungi), fruiting body of a subterranean ascomycete fungus, one of the species of the genus ''Tuber (fungus), Tuber''. More than one hundred other genera of fungi are classified as truffles including ''Geopora'', ''P ...

sweetbread Sweetbread is a culinary name for the thymus or pancreas, typically from calf or lamb. Sweetbreads have a rich, slightly gamey flavor and a tender, succulent texture. They are often served as an appetizer or a main course and can be accompani ...

s, or

morel ''Morchella'', the true morels, is a genus of edible sac fungi closely related to anatomically simpler cup fungi in the order Pezizales ( division Ascomycota). These distinctive fungi have a honeycomb appearance due to the network of ridges ...

s in a cream sauce. In

Italian cuisine Italian cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine#CITEREFDavid1988, David 1988, Introduction, pp. 101–103 consisting of the ingredients, recipes, and cooking techniques developed in Italy since Ancient Roman cuisine, Roman times, and later spread ...

, cockscombs are an ingredient of , a traditional sauce which also includes chicken

liver The liver is a major metabolic organ (anatomy), organ exclusively found in vertebrates, which performs many essential biological Function (biology), functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the Protein biosynthesis, synthesis of var ...

s, wattles and unlaid eggs. It is used in the

pasta Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an Leavening agent, unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or Eggs as food, eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Pasta was originally on ...

dish and in the main dish . Combs are prepared by

parboiling Parboiling (or leaching) is the partial or semi boiling of food as the first step in cooking. The word is from the Old French ''parbouillir'', 'to boil thoroughly' but by mistaken association with "part", it has acquired this definition. The w ...

and skinning, then cooking in

court-bouillon Court-bouillon or court bouillon (in Louisiana, pronounced ''coo-bee-yon'') is a quickly-cooked broth used for poaching (food), poaching other foods, most commonly fish (food), fish or seafood. It is also sometimes used for poaching vegetables, e ...

. After preparation, they are greyish. They are often served in Chinese

dim sum Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cu ...

-style dishes.

Other

Because of its bright color and distinctive shape, "cockscomb" also describes various plants, including the florists' plant '' Celosia cristata'', the meadow weed

yellow rattle ''Rhinanthus minor'', known as yellow rattle, is a herbaceous wildflower in the genus ''Rhinanthus'' in the family Orobanchaceae (the broomrapes). It has circumpolar distribution in Europe, Russia, western Asia, and northern North America. An an ...

, sainfoin, wild

poppy A poppy is a flowering plant in the subfamily Papaveroideae of the family Papaveraceae. Poppies are herbaceous plants, often grown for their colourful flowers. One species of poppy, '' Papaver somniferum'', is the source of the narcotic drug ...

, lousewort, ''

Erythronium ''Erythronium'', the fawn lily, trout lily, dog's-tooth violet or adder's tongue, is a genus of Eurasian and North American plants in the Liliaceae, lily family, most closely related to tulips. The name Erythronium derives from Ancient Greek () ...

'' and ''

Erythrina crista-galli ''Erythrina'' is a genus of plants in the pea family, Fabaceae. It contains about 130 species, which are distributed in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. They are trees, with the larger species growing up to in height. These species ...

''; the characteristic

jester A jester, also known as joker, court jester, or fool, was a member of the household of a nobleman or a monarch kept to entertain guests at the royal court. Jesters were also travelling performers who entertained common folk at fairs and town ma ...

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...

; a shape of

(''creste di galli''); and so on.

Hyaluronic acid Hyaluronic acid (; abbreviated HA; conjugate base hyaluronate), also called hyaluronan, is an anionic, nonsulfated glycosaminoglycan distributed widely throughout connective, epithelial, and neural tissues. It is unique among glycosaminog ...

, which is used in skincare and medical treatments to hydrate and maintain moisture in the skin, is extracted from cockscomb.

Spelling variations

* cockscomb * cock's comb * cock's-comb * coxcomb

Gallery

File:Zijaanzichtkophaan.JPG, Brown rooster File:CHUCK - Flickr - Cornelia Kopp.jpg File:Haushuhn مرغ خانگی 06.jpg File:Poules en bio à Bailleul-Neuville 16.jpg File:Rooster02 detail.jpg File:Rooster in Kathmandu, Nepal.jpg File:Rooster cockerel.jpg File:Kakasok.jpg File:Rooster portrait, France.jpg File:Crested Rooster.jpg File:Cresta nuez 114x106px.jpg File:Cresta guisante 114x106px.jpg File:Cresta rosa 114x106px.jpg File:Cockscomb (PSF).jpg File:Silkie-rooster-cyril.jpg, Silkie rooster with purple comb and wattle

References