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The uropygial (preen) gland secretion of the domestic turkey resembles that of the chicken in consisting mainly of a diester wax. The esterified fatty acids are saturated; they include all members of the n-C10-C20 homologous series, the C17-C19 acids together accounting for 60% of the total. There are four major 2,3-n-alkanediols, C19-C23, all having the erythro configuration as determined by thin-layer chromatography on boric acid-silica gel and by gas-liquid chromatography. The chicken uropygiols, by contrast, contain erythro and threo diols. It is suggested that the chicken possesses two biosynthetic enzyme systems for the diols, the turkey only one