This plural noun describes the white stripes or peeled spots that Jacob created by stripping bark from poplar, almond, and plane tree branches. The word appears only in Genesis 30:37, where Jacob placed these striped rods before Laban's flocks at their watering troughs as part of his breeding technique to produce speckled and spotted offspring. The term derives from a root meaning 'to peel' and specifically denotes the exposed white wood visible after removing the bark in strips, creating a striped appearance.