Why another Chicken page?

When my wife, daughter, and I moved out to the country near Lodi, NY, in 2000, we inherited nine hens. We had never had chickens before, but liked the idea, and quickly became fascinated with the feathered beasts. Well, perhaps our daughter wasn't as thrilled with them as my wife and I were. We were quite surprised that each hen had so much personality and that each could be so different. My wife, who is a professional ornithologist and bird biologist, was pleased to see that these free ranging chickens had retained so much of wild birds' instinctive behaviors. She has been less than pleased at how quickly they can move in and destroy a an unprotected garden bed. Not quite a year later, as we began planning an expansion of our barnyard flock, we tried to figure out which breeds to select. We found much information about chooks [my wife, who lived in New Zealand for many years, has taught me to call them chooks] on the Web, but what we didn't find was a single chart with all the comparisons we were interested in. So I made one myself.

The author of this site with friends (when they were still pullets). [photo by Everett Morse]

The main chicken chart includes comparison data on more than 60 breeds. I started with a dozen, but gradually added more breeds, adding bantams and game birds last. In addition there is also a smaller chart that better represents our own flock and might serve as a good list of birds for those considering a backyard flock. Some of the categories used in the charts are arbitrary and of my own creation. Some of the data comes from information found in the American Poultry Association Standard of Excellence. There have been many other sources. Two important individuals I have consulted and to whom I am very grateful are Johan Opsomer from the Nederlands and Barry Koffler, creater of FeatherSite.

I have only included breeds that I could find enough information for good comparisons, so quite a few breeds have been left out, especially those not available in North America. Omitted from the charts are sexlinks and other hybrids and commercial strains (Even though two of our favorite original hens were Hubbard Golden Comets). I welcome any suggestions or corrections you have to make.