Abstract
This research was designed to study the histological characteristics of gizzard in turkey by light and scanning electron microscopes. The study was performed on ten healthy mature birds of turkey. The specimens were immediately removed after slaughter, gently cleaned and fixed in 10% buffered neutral formalin then processed for light and scanning microscopic studies. The histological observations revealed that as other species of birds the turkey gizzard was consisted of four tunics; mucosa, sumbucosa, musculosa and serosa. Thick layer of cuticle was lined the gizzard mucosa which contains gastric pits. The lamina epithelialis lined with simple cuboidal epithelium, the lamina propria contained simple tubular glands which arranged in groups. These glands are lined by simple cuboidal epithelium. The inner part of these tubular glands contains an eosinophilic secretion. PAS positive material distribute nearly in almost region. It was within the lumen of the glands, within the cells lining the surface and crypts, Also, within the deep glandular cells. The submucosa consists of connective tissue formed mainly from collagen fibers. The tunica muscularis was very thick formed from parallel bundles of smooth muscle fibers, these bundles separated by thin layer of connective tissue. Scanning electron microscopic observations revealed that the surface of the koilin cuticle was very thick and appeared in form of clusters separated by grooves resembling the cracked ground appearance. These clusters were in the form of rodlets.

Key words: Turkey, Gizzard, Light, Scanning microscopes.