#araucana

"He’s a dinosaur" (about Brahma Chicken) "My favorite chicken! We had a bunch of them when I was little and they were so smart and funny and fast and a bit territorial with smaller animals but it was so funny" (about Araucana Chicken) "Chickens descended from junglefowl, but they're pretty neat birds also."

I was really wondering when a second chicken was going to be added to the submissions, and was seriously considering having Araucana's showcased on behalf of all chickens. I owned Ameraucana chickens as a kid and they're a 'child' breed of Aracauna.

Aracauna Facts: these chickens often display either "ear muffs" or are rumpless and lay green eggs! Its not often than both muffed and rumpless birds exist, as both traits are caused by 'autosomal dominant lethal alleles'. This is one reason why Ameraucana were bred, as a way to keep the blue-green of the eggs while trying to breed out the lethal genes.

Brahma Facts: the Brahma is a powerhouse of a chicken. Between 1850-1930s, they were known as the top meat chicken in the country. They made great farmhouse birds, as the males remain tender for much longer than other chickens (up to a year, rather than 6-8 months) and the eggs were laid quite large at about 200 a year. They are also fairly cold resistant due to their feather quality and small combs, though their leg feathers can hold mud and moisture and lead to frostbite if their living quarters arent kept dry.

Red Junglefowl Facts: while this is the species that have rise to our domestic chicken, the grey junglefowl, Sri Lankan junglefowl and green junglefowl have also contributed genetic material to the gene pool. Genetic evidence suggests chickens were domesticated between 7,400-8,000 years ago!

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