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Malay |
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Malay chickens can stand over three feet tall. Bred
originally for cockfighting, owners today keep them primarily for exhibition.
They lay one egg a week. At best an older hen may lay fifty eggs a year. Malays
have a lean, tough carcass that usually requires special cooking preparation.
Although a rangy, aggressive fowl, they lack hardiness. Malays do poorly in
confinement. Breeders have used them quite effectively for regenerating and
improving other Asian fowl.
Raised to fight, the Malay chicken displays a fierce
aggressiveness. A Malayan hen will kill chicks from other hens if they come to
close to hers. Of course, the roosters will always fight given the opportunity.
If an owner has too many Malay chickens in confin
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Malaysian Serama Bantam |
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Malaysian
Serama Bantams are the smallest breed of chicken in the world, weighing less
than 500g. They are only 15-25 cm tall (a standard can of soda is 11.5 cm tall)
and are the result of crossing Japanese bantams with Malaysian bantams.
They originated in Malaysia
and the birds we see today were developed from crosses of Ayam Kapans and Japanese Bantams in the 1970''s and 80''s by Wee Yean Een. They are supposedly named after the
Thai king, Raja Sri Rama, who, like these little birds, was renowned for his
majestic appearance and proud carriage.
There are 3
categories for this breed and they are graded according to their weight with
the smallest and most desirable weighing just 350g. They are very upright
l
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Marans |
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Marans lay
three eggs a week. Marans are prized for dark brown or chocolate colored eggs.
Ian Fleming, the creator of the James Bond novels helped popularize the eggs
and the breed by making their eggs the favorite of 007. Raised in a damp region
of France, Marans tolerate wet conditions well. However, they run the risk of
frostbite as do all breeds with large comb or wattles. The poultry world often
overlooks the meat producing capabilities of the Marans. Marans grow quickly
and produce a succulent, fine-textured, white meat.
Marans are
quiet, friendly, and docile. They make a great pet or 4H fowl for young people.
One breeder who had raised hundreds of Marans roosters claimed that he had
never had an aggressive M
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Marsh Daisy |
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Marsh Daisys
are a rare breed of chicken originating in Lancashire, England. Their name may
be related to its origin in a marsh-like area, or that its large rose comb
resembles the flower of the Marsh Daisy.
Beginning in
the 1880s in Southport, Lancashire, Old English Game, roosters were crossed
with Malay hens to create the foundation for the breed. Black Hamburgs, White
Leghorns, and Sicilian Buttercups were also added to complete its
characteristics. They become a proper, defined breed in England in 1913.
Marsh Daisy
chickens are a hardy, economical barnyard chicken, but they are slow to mature.
They are a lightweight breed of standard fowl, with males at a maximum of 2.95
kilos (6.5 pounds) and femal
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Mericanel della Brianza |
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Mericanel
della Brianza Chickens are a
Bantam breed which originally came from Lombardia, Italy. They are the only
Bantam breed officially recognized in Italy. They are good brooding hens and
are able to brood eggs of games or from other breeds.
Content and photo
source: Agraria.org
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Millefiori di Lonigo |
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Millefiori
di Lonigo chickens were shown
for the first time in 1934 at the Sixteenth Padua Trade Fair by the Itinerant
Lonigo Centre for Agricultural Research.
Some Millefiori di Lonigo chickens have been found in a traditional farm in
South-Veneto, Italy, and they have been studied for two years in order to
understand their real nature. Afterwards, the ri-selection of an ancient breed
started: the Millefiori di Lonigo.
The most common
problems were: rose eggs, red-veined earlobes, erect comb in female.
Many years of disorderly crossbreeding have partly distort the breed, but
hopefully the old progeny has not been completely lost.
Typical are the
late feathering, similar to Valdarnese, and the
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Millefiori Piemontese |
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The Millefiori
Piemontese is currently extinct, however, according to local experts, it seems
to have still existed in the beginning of the 1990’s although genetically
altered by out-crossing. According to the available description, it seems to
have been quite similar to the Ancona breed (exchequer), heavily built and with
red earlobes but still quite similar to the typical homosomic Mediterranean
chickens.
The possibility of
surviving of few relict Millefiori Piemontese chicken can’t be excluded, so who
knows? They may come back.
Content and photo
source: Agraria.org
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Minorca |
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Minorca Chickens
were developed to be an egg laying bird. While their egg-laying has slowed
since there original conception, they''re still exceptional layers. While not
specifically bred to be dinner birds, you can still get a decent meal out of
them. There is also a small version of the Minorcas that tends to be more
popular within the show circuit.
Minorcas are
known to be flighty birds that don''t generally make great pets. In addition,
the males are typically fairly aggressive and can''t be kept together without
fighting. This is only really with other chickens though, so don''t worry about
handling them too much. They don''t particularly like being confined, so a large
run would be a great for their active nature.
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Modenese |
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The Modenese has
been described as a local breed by some authors. According to some others, the
Modenese should be the result of crossbreeding among Padovana Comune (Improved
Magiarola), White Livorno, and Black Red Livorno.
Because of the
predominant black red variety wheaten, it was called Buff of Modena. The
Modenese chicken appears in some paintings by Gaetano Chierici, an artist from
Emilia-Romagna. A breeding of Modenese has been recently discovered and the
University of Parma is carrying out the productivity tests.
A small stock is
bred by the University of Parma, in the Veterinary Faculty.There also is a
conservation project carried out by the Province of Parma and the Animal
Production Department of
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Modern Games |
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Modern Games
are a bantam breed prized almost entirely for their abilities as show chickens.
They are very easy to tame and make for a simple but elegant breed, popular
with most fanciers. They aren''t very well-suited for laying eggs though. They
are also not the best meat birds as they are so small to begin with and skinny.
Modern Games
are known to be extremely aggressive, so extra care should be taken when
interacting with Roosters. Even the hens have aggressive tendencies at times.
They don''t like being confined for very long, but they can be trained to be
friendly toward their owners.
Everything
about them is upright, so they stand tall and carry their short tails high.
Their shoulders are dist
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Mugellese |
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Mugellese,
also known as Mugginese, are a rustic dual-purpose bantam from Tuscany, in
central Italy. They get their name from the Mugello, an area to the north-east
of Florence. They were common until the 1950’s, but became rare in the second half of the 20th
century. They are now in a phase of recovery, selection, and improvement.
Mugellese hens
are broody. The capons are used to raise the chicks immediately after the
birth. They are a very lively chicken, very active, even if mild.
They are dark
golden (partridge) and hens may also be wheaten buff. Their skin is white and theirlegs
are pale or flesh-colored. They have a single comb is with 4–6 points. Their ear-lobes
range from red to white. Their avera
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