Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Cream Legbars have a yellow beak, a smooth, red face; red comb; and red, long and thin
wattles. The comb is a single erect comb with five to seven even spikes. The comb is smaller
in males than it is in females. The earlobes are pale blue on both the male and female. They
have a crest on the back top portion of their head. Their skin is yellow with a clean leg. Cream
Legbars have four evenly spaced toes on each foot. Their shanks are typically strong, clean,
and rounded.
The roosters are muscular birds with long, feathered necks and a tail that sits at a 45-degree
angle. The females are decent egg layers and produce about 180 eggs per year. The tempera-
ment of both genders is flighty. They are noisy birds with cackles that are similar to those of
the Araucana. They are hearty in any climate, but do not bear confinement well. They are
non-broody, but nervous. If you are looking for a bird to provide you with a colorful array of
eggs and you are able to tolerate the noise, this may be the breed for you.
Ancona
Originating near Acona, Italy, this breed is black with white-tipped feathers. They are a smal-
ler chicken that lays about five small, white eggs per week. This breed can be flighty. This
trait combined with their darker color helps them avoid predators.
Holland
This often-overlooked breed has a high productivity of medium, white eggs. This breed does
well in all climates, even extreme cold. However, their single comb might become frostbitten
in the winter. As a calm and hardy breed that forages well, these birds are able to adapt to vir-
tually any surrounding. They are known to be quiet, friendly, and calm chickens, and hens of
this breed seldom become broody.
Sussex
These birds, which originated in Sussex County, England, are also known as Speckled Sussex
in America. They are plump birds, available in white, silver, red, brown buff, and speckled.
Avoid exposing this bird to excessive sunlight because their coats have a tendency to become
brassy. The speckled variety gets more speckled with each molting, making it an attractive
bird.
Sussex chickens have a single comb and a clean leg. They are a heavy breed weighing about 9
pounds for the male and 7 pounds for the female. The bantam variety is about 4 pounds. The
