Wattle can refer to two completely different things:

1. A building material made from woven sticks, branches, or thin wooden strips, often covered with mud or clay. For thousands of years, people built homes using wattle and daub: they'd weave flexible branches between upright posts to create walls, then plaster the gaps with mud mixed with straw or animal hair. The wattle provided the framework, like a basket turned into a wall. You can still see wattle-and-daub construction in historical buildings and traditional homes around the world. The technique is surprisingly strong and keeps buildings cool in summer and warm in winter.
2. The fleshy, dangling skin that hangs from the throat or chin of certain birds, particularly chickens, turkeys, and roosters. A rooster's bright red wattle swings back and forth when he struts around the barnyard. These wattles aren't just decoration: they help birds regulate their body temperature by releasing heat, and their size and color can signal health and maturity to other birds.