Ameraucana is a breed of chickens bred in the United States almost 50 years ago, when the Araucana chickens of the German and English lines were introduced to this country.

History of the breed

A bird exhibition was held and several families of the elite livestock of these breeds, brought from overseas, fell into the hands of American breeders. In turn, the Araucana breed was taken out of South America by Europeans 200 years ago. Adapted in Europe and divided into two lines: a German tailless with no coccyx and an English tailed with a tufted head.

The ancestors and breeders of the Araucana breed were a tribe of Indians with the same name. They bred this breed and improved it by selecting birds with the best performance for several hundred years, even before the discovery of America by Columbus. There were two indicators: the hens were left to the tribe with the most saturated blue egg color, and the cockerels, the most pugnacious and cocky, tailless, to participate in cock fights.

Ameraucana

American hobby chickens crossed Araucana chickens with local American chickens many times until they produced offspring with eggs of various colors and shades: from pink and yellow, to blue and olive. The color of the shell did not have any fixed and inherited trait, one and the same hen could lay eggs of any color and not transmit this ability to its offspring. This is how the family of chickens was born, which were later called "Easter" by the people.

Over time, breeders more or less streamlined their work and got a breed with fixed traits, completely inherited by descendants, which they named Ameraucana and introduced into the American standard in 1984. The Americans did not show much imagination, inventing the name of the new breed from the addition of two words - America and Araucan ...

Initial pampering and confusion were not in vain among the Americans, and scrupulous European experts still do not recognize this American breed as a breed; at exhibitions, birds, without further ado, bring all Ameraukans into the group of Easter mongrel chickens. American breeders are offended by such behavior of Europeans and have long indicated that the breed bird of Araucana lays only blue eggs with completely dyed shells, and not just outside like Araucan. Therefore, a European lover, at least out of respect for the work of his overseas counterparts, should not confuse chickens of this breed with chickens called EE. So in America they officially call Easter chickens, side offspring of this breed, which do not have signs fixed in the standard.

Interesting! Chicken EE may well carry eggs in one clutch, differing from each other in intensity of color and shades. This, apparently, determines the set of genes that fell on this egg.

It is because of this diversity in the color of eggs that chickens are called Easter eggs in everyday life, carrying a multi-colored egg, for their resemblance to dyed eggs, taken to be served on the table on Easter. Moreover, any color - brown, pink, blue, blue, green. That is, Easter eggs are simply chickens that lay Easter eggs.

The breed of chickens Ameraukan is unique, it has its own standards for color, constitution, external characteristics. In this breed, there is a variety of dwarf decorative chickens, the so-called bentams, affectionately called bentams in everyday use among fans.

Ameraucana - breed of chickens: description

Foxy Chick (breed of chickens): description

This chicken breed is positioned as an egg and meat breed. In the American standard, 8 main colors are fixed:

  • buffalo skin color (yellow-brown),
  • white,
  • the black,
  • silver,
  • blue,
  • wheat,
  • red-brown,
  • wheat blue.

Currently, other types of colors, for example, lavender, have been bred, but they are not yet fixed in the standard.

Ameraukan lavender color

The main external signs of the breed:

  • Dense plumage over the body, three characteristic tufts of feathers on the head, associated with a goatee and tubs. These bundles can be quite long and even with curls.
  • Strong legs with four toes can have different colors depending on the color - white, blue-gray.
  • Red or brown eyes look very expressive, give chickens a smug look.
  • The comb is pod-shaped or pea-shaped.
  • The lobes are pinkish-red, brighter in roosters than in chickens.
  • The tail of roosters is beautifully crescent-shaped, long, but not excessive.
  • The wings are developed and strong enough to flap over the fence.
  • The color of the eggshell is mainly blue, and the shell is blue not only outside, but also inside.

The mass of chickens of this breed reaches 2.5 kg, roosters are 1 kg more than chickens. The laying hen lays from 200 to 250 eggs per year, which is a very high indicator. Has a longer period of high productivity than chickens of other egg breeds. Puberty is quite early, they begin to rush at 5-6 months.

Egg production of the breed

The temper of females of this breed is calm, with constant communication with a person, they get used to their hands and become completely tame. Roosters are wilder, prone to aggression. In them, undoubtedly, the Indian ancestor affects, but the Americans continue to work on the character of the roosters, not allowing the most aggressive individuals to breed.

The instinct of hatching eggs in chickens of this breed is low, but it happens that an individual individual will show the qualities and instinct of a caring mother. This is an exception, therefore, the main population of chickens will have to be incubated or placed under hens of other breeds that are prone to incubating and raising their offspring.

The bird of this breed looks arrogant and imposing, despite this it forages well on the walk and, if it gets into the garden or vegetable garden, it will very quickly harm or destroy the future harvest in the bud. She will also perfectly cope with the task of getting fruits from the trees in the garden, strong wings will help her with this. Therefore, walking enclosures for chickens of the Ameraukan breed are best done with a top covered with a net.

Walking chicken enclosures

Growing features

Ayam Tsemani (breed of chickens): description

Chickens of this breed are strong, sturdy and hardy. The best content for them is walking. They perfectly tolerate both hot and cold climates. They love to paddle, swim in the dust, do not miss the opportunity to climb into the garden and walk, emptying the beds. Very beautiful and attractive in appearance, a real decoration of a country estate.

Feed should be tailored to the type of hen, as the egg direction still takes precedence. Give as much greens as possible - chopped herbs and vegetables.

Chicken food should have a high protein content (16-20%) and a lot of protein:

  • fish and waste from it, fish meal;
  • meat and bone meal;
  • dairy products and dairy waste.

Ameraucan chickens are not prone to obesity, because they are very active and are in motion all day. They are very sensitive to the quality of the water, so it must be clean and fresh. Drinkers need to be washed frequently during summer. The same applies to chickens of this breed; in the first decade of life, boiled water is generally recommended for them.

Ameraukans are not afraid of frosts, therefore, up to -5-7 ° C, they can freely go to the aviary for a walk. The chicken coop for the winter should be spacious and insulated, without drafts. Litter on the floor is at least 10 cm. Straw, sawdust, dry weeds are suitable.

Molting occurs in autumn and lasts a couple of months. The shedding hens begin to lay eggs again. The period of maximum productivity is the first 2 years, so you need to think about the full replacement of the parent flock in time.

Chickens of the Ameraukan breed are not prone to diseases, since they have high immunity and good health at the gene level. Only fleas, ticks, chewing lice and helminths can harm the livestock. It is in human power to prevent and prevent diseases by arranging preventive disinfection in the hen house, keeping the dishes, perches and nests clean, and also periodically soldering chickens with anthelmintic drugs.

Anthelmintic drugs

You need to buy purebred chickens from trusted breeders, since they are expensive, which is why you can run into scammers speculating in the exotic variety. In Russia, it was Easter chickens, which outwardly very similar to the breed, became widespread. In fact, they are the side offspring and crosses of this breed, but their eggs are really multi-colored. The price for them is quite affordable, and hatching eggs are inexpensive.

Breed advantages and disadvantages

Legbar (breed of chickens): description

American chickens of the Ameraukan breed have a number of advantages:

  • unusual egg color;
  • beautiful appearance with many colors;
  • high taste qualities of eggs, wonderful white tasty meat resembling quail;
  • standard feed without frills;
  • excellent adaptation to cold climates;
  • fast weight gain;
  • no tendency to obesity;
  • genetically high immune system;
  • early puberty and high egg production.

The disadvantages of the breed include the following factors:

  • there is no maternity instinct, natural reproduction is very weak;
  • exposure to the negative effects of drafts and dampness;
  • increased aggression in males;
  • chickens up to 10 days of age are rather flimsy.

Each poultry breeder decides to breed this outlandish breed or not. To do this, it is worth weighing all the pros and cons of the variety. Not the least role in the choice is played by the features of care and maintenance. The instructions above will help doubters and tell you how to proceed after the first chicks hatch.