A rooster, also known as a cockerel or , is a male gallinaceous bird, usually a male chicken (Gallus gallus). Mature male chickens less than one year old are called cockerels. The term "rooster" originates in the United States,[1] and the term is widely used throughout North America, as well as Australia and New Zealand.[2] The older terms "" or "cockerel", the latter denoting a young coc