The chicken breeds recognized by the American Poultry Association are listed in the American Standard of Perfection . They are categorized into classes: standard-sized breeds are grouped by type or by place of origin, while bantam breeds are classified according to type or physical characteristics.
The large breeds are divided into six classes – American, Asiatic, Continental, English, Mediterranean, and All Other Standard Breeds – largely according to their place of origin.
The American Class contains thirteen breeds which originated in Canada or the United States. [1] : 11 All are heavy breeds, and most lay brown eggs; [1] : 11 most are cold-hardy: [2]
These three breeds originate in China; they are large, feather legged, and lay brown eggs: [1] : 21
This group consists of eleven breeds from Belgium, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. They are mostly sprightly birds, the Faverolles being an exception: [1] : 70
This class consists of five breeds from the United Kingdom and one from Australia: [3]
These breeds originating in Italy and Spain have white earlobes and tend to be productive layers of white eggs. In general they are flighty, and exceptional free-range birds, with both evasion and foraging skills: [1] : 178
Other breeds are grouped in this class, which has three subclasses: Game, Oriental, and Miscellaneous. The Game subclass includes the non-oriental game birds, the Oriental subclass includes mainly birds from Asia; the Cubalaya, however, is from Cuba. The Miscellaneous subclass holds the remaining breeds. [3]
Bantams are grouped according to type or physical appearance into six classes: [3]
This class consists solely of the Modern Game bantam. [1] [3]
This class contains all the bantam breeds with a single comb, excluding the game bantams: [1] [3]
This class groups breeds with both a rose comb and featherless legs: [1]
The breeds of this class have feathering on their legs and feet: [1] [3]
This class includes all of the breeds that do not fall into any of the other classes: [1] [3]
The Leghorn, Italian: Livorno or Livornese, is a breed of chicken originating in Tuscany, in central Italy. Birds were first exported to North America in 1828 from the Tuscan port city of Livorno, on the western coast of Italy. They were initially called "Italians", but by 1865 the breed was known as "Leghorn", the traditional anglicisation of "Livorno". The breed was introduced to Britain from the United States in 1870. White Leghorns are commonly used as layer chickens in many countries of the world. Other Leghorn varieties are less common.
The Orpington is a British breed of chicken. It was bred in the late nineteenth century by William Cook of Orpington, at that time in Kent in south-east England. It was intended to be a dual-purpose breed, to be reared both for eggs and for meat, but soon became exclusively a show bird. The Australorp of Australia derives from it.
The German Langshan is a breed of chicken developed from the exported Croad Langshan in Germany. It is a large, robust breed of exceptional height. Though most often raised for show, it has practical application as a layer and meat bird, as well. The standard-sized German Langshan is uncommon in both the United States and the United Kingdom, but the bantam form is popular in the latter.
A comb is a fleshy growth or crest on the top of the head of some gallinaceous birds, such as domestic chickens. The alternative name cockscomb reflects the fact that combs are generally larger on cock birds than on hens. The comb is one of several fleshy protuberances on the heads of chickens, the others being the wattles and earlobes, which collectively are called caruncles. In turkeys, the caruncles are the fleshy nodules on the head and throat.
The Australorp is a chicken breed of Australian origin, developed as a utility breed with a focus on egg laying and is famous for laying more than 300 eggs per year. It achieved world-wide popularity in the 1920s after the breed broke numerous world records for number of eggs laid and has been a popular breed in the western world since. It is one of eight poultry breeds created in Australia and recognised by the Australian Poultry Standards. The most popular colour of the breed is black, which is the only colour recognised in the United States of America, but blue and white are also recognised in Australia and the Poultry Club South Africa recognises buff, splash, wheaten laced and golden in addition.
The Ancona is a breed of chicken which originated in the Marches, region of Italy, but which was bred to its present type mainly in the United Kingdom in the nineteenth century. It is named after the city of Ancona, capital of the Marche. It is popular in Britain and the United States, but uncommon in Italy; an initiative to re-establish it in its native area and preserve its biodiversity was launched in 2000. There are also Ancona bantams.
Hollands are a fairly rare breed of large chickens that are dual purpose and originate from America. They are hard to tell from Plymouth rocks and Dominiques, but can be recognized as the Plymouth Rock has colored feet and the Dominique has a rose comb.
The Minorca, Catalan: Gallina de Menorca, Spanish: Menorquina, is a breed of domestic chicken originating in the Mediterranean island of Menorca, in the Balearic Islands to the south-east of Spain. It is a well-known exhibition bird in many countries of the world, but in the island of Menorca is an endangered breed and considered to be at risk of extinction.
The Ameraucana is an American breed of domestic chicken. It was developed in the United States in the 1970s, and derives from Araucana chickens brought from Chile. It was bred to retain the blue-egg gene but eliminate the lethal alleles of the parent breed. There are both standard-sized and bantam versions.
The Sebright is a British breed of bantam chicken. It is a true bantam – a miniature bird with no corresponding large version – and is one of the oldest recorded British bantam breeds. It is named after Sir John Saunders Sebright, who created it as an ornamental breed by selective breeding in the early nineteenth century.
The Houdan or Poule de Houdan is an old French breed of domestic chicken. It is named for its area of origin, the commune of Houdan, in the département of Yvelines to the west of Paris. It belongs to the crested chicken group, is muffed and bearded, has an unusual leaf-shaped comb, and has five toes on each foot rather than the usual four.
The Crèvecœur is an endangered historic breed of crested chicken from the Pays d'Auge, in the Calvados département of Normandy, in north-western France. It is named after the commune of Crèvecœur-en-Auge. It is related to the La Flèche and to other Norman breeds such as the Caumont and Caux and the extinct Pavilly; the Merlerault was formerly considered a sub-type of the Crèvecœur.
The Nankin Bantam or Nankin is a British bantam breed of chicken. It is a true bantam, a naturally small breed with no large counterpart from which it was miniaturised. It is of South-east Asian origin, and is among the oldest bantam breeds. It is a yellowish buff colour, and the name is thought to derive from the colour of nankeen cotton from China.
The Chantecler is a breed of chicken originating in Canada. The Chantecler was developed in the early 20th century, at the Abbey of Notre-Dame du Lac in Oka, Quebec. It is extremely cold-resistant, and is suitable for both egg and meat production.
The Rhode Island White is a breed of chicken originating in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Despite their very similar names and shared place of origin, the Rhode Island White is a distinct breed from the Rhode Island Red. However, Rhode Island Reds and Whites can be bred together to create Red Sex-Link hybrid chickens, such as the ISA Brown. In Australia, the Rhode Island White is regarded as a color variety of the Rhode Island breed according to the Australian Poultry Standards.
The Derbyshire Redcap is a breed of chicken originating in the English county of Derbyshire. The name "Redcap" derives from the breed's unusually large Rose-type comb. British breed standards dictate a length of more than 7 centimetres (3 inches) of length for a Redcap comb. It is covered in small, fleshy points, and has a distinct spike pointing backwards called a "leader". Combs, wattles and earlobes are all ideally bright red.
The Lamona is an American breed of chicken. It was developed from 1912 by Harry S. Lamon, who was the senior poultry expert of the Bureau of Animal Industry, at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Beltsville, Maryland.
Solid black plumage color refers to a plumage pattern in chickens characterized by a uniform, black color across all feathers. There are chicken breeds where the typical plumage color is black, such as Australorp, Sumatra, White-Faced Black Spanish, Jersey Giant and others. And there are many other breeds having different color varieties, which also have an extended black variety, such as Leghorn, Minorca, Wyandotte, Orpington, Langshan and others.
In poultry standards, solid white is coloration of plumage in chickens characterized by a uniform pure white color across all feathers, which is not generally associated with depigmentation in any other part of the body.