Rooster

A rooster, also known as a cockerel or cock, is a male gallinaceous bird, with cockerel being younger and rooster being an adult male chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus). The term 'rooster' originated in the United States as a puritan euphemism to avoid the sexual connotation of the original English 'cock', and is widely used throughout North America. Ironically, cocks do not have a penis —sperm transfer occurs by cloacal contact between the male and female, in a maneuver known as the “cloacal kiss”. 'Roosting' is the action of perching aloft to sleep at day, which is done by both sexes. The rooster is polygamous, but cannot guard several nests of eggs at once. He guards the general area where his hens are nesting, and attacks other roosters that enter his territory. During the daytime, a rooster often sits on a high perch, usually 0.9 to 1.5 m (3 to 5 feet) off the ground, to serve as a lookout for his group (hence the term 'rooster'). He sounds a distinctive alarm call if predators are nearby and will frequently crow to assert his territory. Roosters almost always start crowing before four months of age. Although it is possible for a hen to crow as well, crowing (together with hackles development) is one of the clearest signs of being a rooster.