Breeders and fanciers of chickens accurately describe the colours and patterns [1] of the feathers of chicken breeds and varieties. This is a list of the terms used in this context.
Self-coloured chickens are those which display one solid colour without patterning of any kind.
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black |  |  | Green iridescence is desired for "beetle black" show chickens. |
| Blue |  Sumatra |  dark blue-laced Andalusian | |
| Splash or Blue Splashed White |  Sumatra |  Silkie | Splash is the homozygous form of Blue |
| Buff |  |  | |
| Lavender |  |  Red lavender | |
| Red |  |  | Red is the intensified version of Buff |
| White |  |  Silkie |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barred |  Barred Rock Hen |  Dark Barred Australian Plymouth Rock | Divided into Dark and Light in Australian Plymouth Rocks |
| Crele |  | The cuckoo pattern with black-breasted red pigmentation | |
| Silver Cuckoo |  | ||
| Golden Cuckoo |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| White Columbian |  |  Sundheimer | Called 'light' in the Brahma and Sussex [2] |
| Buff Columbian |  | ||
| Golden Belted |  |  | Belted resembles Columbian but the head and neck are solid black, not merely striped |
| Silver Belted |  cock and hen |  chick |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Duckwing |  | ||
| Blue Golden Duckwing | |||
| Silver Duckwing |  |  | |
| Blue Silver Duckwing | |||
| Fawn Silver Duckwing |  |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Laced | not used; black-laced plumage is named after the red series colour instead: "golden laced" for black and red, "citron laced" for black and buff, "silver laced" for black and white | ||
| Blue Laced |  |  | |
| Blue Laced Red |  |  | |
| Buff Laced |  | Alternatively known as Chamois. [3] | |
| Golden Laced |  Sebright |  | |
| Silver Laced |  |  |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birchen | Sometimes called Grey in Japanese bantams. | ||
| Golden Pencilled | |||
| Silver Pencilled |  |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Mottled |  | ||
| Citron Spangled |  | ||
| Golden Spangled |  | ||
| Silver Spangled |  | ||
| Mille Fleur |  |  | Called 'speckled' in the Sussex. |
| Lemon Mille Fleur | |||
| Porcelain | A diluted version of Mille Fleur |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black-tailed Buff |  | ||
| Black-tailed White |  | ||
| Black-tailed red |  |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Breasted Red |  | ||
| Blue Breasted Red |  | ||
| Partridge |  | ||
| Wheaten |  | ||
| Blue Wheaten |
| Colour | Cock | Hen | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brassy Back | |||
| Blue Brassy Back | |||
| Blue Light Brown | |||
| Blue-red | |||
| Brown | |||
| Brown Red | Sometimes called Gold Birchen. | ||
| Coloured | |||
| Coronation | |||
| Cream Light Brown |  | ||
| Dark brown | |||
| Exchequer | Found only in Leghorns with the exception of Serama. [4] | ||
| Ginger Red | |||
| Golden Neck | |||
| Golden-necked mille fleur | |||
| Gray | |||
| Lemon Blue | |||
| Light Brown | |||
| Pyle | Alternatively spelt Pile. | ||
| Red Pyle |  | ||
| Quail |  |  | |
| Salmon |  |  | |
| Silver Blue |  |  | |
| Silver Gray |  | ||
| Splash | | ||
| Tolbunt | Seen only in Polish chickens | ||
| White Laced Red | |||
| Chocolate | Sex-linked recessive. Found rarely in Orpingtons and Wyandottes. [5] |
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 Cochin is a breed of large domestic chicken. It derives from large feather-legged chickens brought from China to Europe and North America in the 1840s and 1850s. It is reared principally for exhibition. It was formerly known as Cochin-China.
The Indian Game is a British breed of game chicken, now reared either for meat or show. It originated in the early nineteenth century in the counties of Cornwall and Devon in south-west England. It is a heavy, muscular bird with an unusually broad breast; the eggs are brown.
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 Pekin Bantam is a British breed of bantam chicken. It derives from birds brought to Europe from China in the nineteenth century, and is named for the city of Peking where it was believed to have originated. It is a true bantam, with no corresponding large fowl. It is recognised only in the United Kingdom, where the Cochin has no recognised bantam version; like the Cochin, it has heavy feathering to the legs and feet. The Entente Européenne treats the Pekin Bantam as equivalent to the bantam Cochin.
The Malay Game is a breed of game chicken. It is among the tallest breeds of chicken, and may stand over 90 cm high.
The Sussex is a British breed of dual-purpose chicken, reared both for its meat and for its eggs. Eight colours are recognised for both standard-sized and bantam fowl. A breed association, the Sussex Breed Club, was organised in 1903.
The Japanese Bantam or Chabo is a Japanese breed of ornamental chicken. It is a true bantam breed, meaning that it has no large fowl counterpart. It characterised by very short legs and a large upright tail that reaches much higher than the head of the bird.
The Marans, French: Poule de Marans, is a French breed of dual-purpose chicken, reared both for meat and for its dark brown eggs. It originated in or near the port town of Marans, in the département of Charente-Maritime, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France.
The Old English Game is a British breed of domestic chicken. It was probably originally bred for cockfighting. Two different standards are recognised by the Poultry Club of Great Britain: Carlisle Old English Game and Oxford Old English Game. There is also an Old English Game bantam.
The Blue Andalusian, Spanish: Andaluza Azul, is a breed of domestic chicken indigenous to the autonomous community of Andalusia in south-west Spain. It is distributed through much of the countryside of Córdoba and Seville, and is concentrated particularly in the area of Utrera, which is considered the heartland of the breed. In 2009 the population was estimated at 10000 birds.
The Barbu d'Uccle or Belgian d'Uccle, Dutch: Ukkelse Baardkriel, is a Belgian breed of bearded bantam chicken. It was first bred in the town of Uccle on the outskirts of Brussels, in central Belgium, in the early years of the twentieth century. It is a true bantam, with no standard-sized large fowl counterpart, and is one of eleven Belgian true bantam breeds.
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 Modern Game is a British breed of ornamental chicken which originated in England between 1850 and 1900. It was bred from gamecock stock, but solely as an exhibition bird.
The Frizzle is a breed of chicken with characteristic curled or frizzled plumage. While the frizzle gene can be seen in many breeds, such as the Pekin and Polish, the Frizzle is recognised as a distinct breed in a number of European countries and Australia. In the United States frizzled chickens are not considered a breed, and at shows are judged by the standards of the breed they belong to.
The Bresse Gauloise is a French breed of domestic chicken. It originates in the historic region and former province of Bresse, in the regions of Rhône-Alpes, Bourgogne and Franche-Comté, in eastern France. Because of legal restrictions on the use of the name, only white chickens raised within that area may be called "Bresse"; outside it, they are given the name "Gauloise"; the breed name combines both. Four colours are recognised for the Bresse Gauloise, three of them linked to areas within Bresse: the Bresse de Bourg is "grey" (silver-pencilled); the Bresse de Bény is white; the Bresse de Louhans is black; and a blue variety has recently been created. White Bresse de Bény chickens and capons raised in the area of Bresse have appellation d'origine contrôlée status and are marketed as poulet de Bresse; they are regarded as a premium product and command higher prices than other chickens.
The Belgian Bantam, Dutch: Belgisch kriel, French: Naine belge, is a breed of bantam chicken from Belgium. It is a true bantam, and has no full-sized counterpart; cocks weigh about 650 grams and hens about 550 g. It is in danger of extinction; in 2010 a total of 168 birds were counted in the whole of Belgium. Fourteen colour patterns are recognised in the European standard.
The Bassette Liégeoise or Bassette is a breed of large bantam chicken from Belgium. It is larger than most bantams, but much smaller than full-sized breeds; cocks weigh about 1000 grams and hens about 900 g. Like most Belgian bantam breeds, it is in danger of extinction. Eighteen colour patterns are officially recognised; many of them are rare.