Frizzle (chicken breed)

Not to be confused with the plumage pattern for which the breed is named, Frizzle (chicken plumage).
Frizzle

A frizzle-feathered chicken at the Minnesota State Fair in Falcon Heights, Minnesota, USA; possibly not of the frizzle breed
Use fancy, eggs
Traits
Weight Male: Standard: 3.2–3.6 kg
Bantam: 680–790 g[1]
  Female: Standard: 2.25–2.7 kg
Bantam: 570–680 g[1]
Egg color white or tinted[1]
Comb type single
Classification
EE Standard and bantam recognised[2]
PCGB soft feather: heavy[3]
Notes
clean legged
Chicken
Gallus gallus domesticus

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[2][4] and Australia.[5] 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.[6]

History

The origin of the Frizzle is unknown. The frizzle gene is thought to have originated in Asia;[7] frizzled chickens have been reported from the Far East since the eighteenth century.[4] The Frizzle breed is the result of breeder selection for exhibition.[4][8] It is recognised in nine European countries: Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Slovakia and the United Kingdom.[2][1]

Characteristics

The gene for the curling of the feathers is incompletely dominant over normal plumage; not all members of the breed display the desired frizzling. Frizzled birds are heterozygous for the gene; when two are bred, the offspring inherit the gene in the usual Mendelian 1:2:1 ratio: 50% are heterozygous and frizzled like the parents, 25% have normal feathering, and 25% are "over-frizzled", with brittle feathers resembling pipe-cleaners. The Frizzle has a single comb and is featherfooted.

The Frizzle is a good layer of white or tinted eggs, and frequently gets broody.[7] It is a good forager and is hardy,[4] although the curled feathers do not protect it well from rain.

Four colours are recognised in the Entente Européenne standard: black, blue, cuckoo and white.,[2] the Poultry Club of Great Britain recognises thirteen colours for both standard and bantam sizes;[9] not all of them are currently bred,[4] and the Australian Poultry Standards recognise black, blue, buff, white, columbian, red and "any recognised colour".[5]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Victoria Roberts (2008). British poultry standards: complete specifications and judging points of all standardized breeds and varieties of poultry as compiled by the specialist breed clubs and recognised by the Poultry Club of Great Britain. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN 9781405156424. p. 121.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Liste des races et variétés homologuée dans les pays EE (28.04.2013). Entente Européenne d’Aviculture et de Cuniculture. Archived 16 June 2013.
  3. Breed Classification. Poultry Club of Great Britain. Accessed August 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Welcome. The Frizzle Society of Great Britain. Archived 30 September 2012.
  5. 1 2 Australian Poultry Standards (2nd ed.). Victorian Poultry Fanciers Association (trading as Poultry Stud Breeders and Exhibitors Victoria). 2011. p. 79. ISBN 978-1-921488-23-8.
  6. Carol Ekarius (2007). Storeys Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds. North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing. ISBN 9781580176682. p. 24.
  7. 1 2 Frances Bassom (2009). Chicken breeds & care: a color directory of the most popular breeds and their care (1. ed.). Buffalo, N.Y.: Firefly Books. p. 137. ISBN 978-1-55407-473-0.
  8. Chris Graham (2006). Choosing and Keeping Chickens. London: Hamlyn. ISBN 9780600614388. p. 102–103.
  9. Frizzle Breed Standards. The Frizzle Society of Great Britain. Archived 16 October 2012.


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