Leafing through the Hoover’s Hatchery catalog or clicking through its website is a fun way to discover the amazing diversity of poultry. The sheer number of chicken types is fascinating but it can be confusing. Just what is a breed? Hybrid?
Just What Is a Breed?
One thing is certain. All chickens belong to the same species, whether they are immense Jersey Giants or diminutive bantams. Such useful birds probably were developed from the Red Jungle Fowl, which still lives in the wild in some southern Asian forests. Scientifically the modern chicken is Galus galus domesticus.
It can get complicated. People domesticated the wild birds thousands of years ago and have been breeding them for specific traits ever since. Chickens have 39 pairs of chromosomes compared to just 23 pairs of humans. All those chromosomes enable great diversity within one species and give breeders an opportunity to develop chickens that are productive for meat and eggs, but have different temperaments, sizes, and feather colors and patterns. The process of creating new chicken breeds continues today.
No one knows how many chicken breeds exist, but there are probably between 1400 and 1600. Some have gone extinct, while new ones keep emerging. A breed is a group within a species that has identifiable characteristics. Breeds breed true. That simply means that mating a male with a female creates offspring that look and behave like their parents.
There are recognizable breeds. These are approved and listed by the American Poultry Association (amerpoultryhassn.com), or, for bantams, the American Bantam Association (bantamclub.com). Not all breeds are listed by these groups but many of the traditional ones are. The respected publication that describes the traits of many recognized breeds, THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION, is produced and updated by the American Poultry Association.
Within many breeds are varieties. For example, within the Brahma breed are the Light, Buff, and Dark varieties. All are in the Asiatic class of chickens that were developed on that continent or from parent stock from that far away place. There are fully 30 varieties listed for the Leghorn Breed, which is in the Mediterranean class. They originated in Italy.
Hoover’s Hatchery lists many breeds recognized in the AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION and others that aren’t. Either way if two birds of the same breed and variety are mated their offspring will be very much like their parents.
Hybrids
Hybrid chickens are very different from those of a breed. Hybrids were developed by poultry geneticists to create birds with special desired traits. Normally they mate two different breeds to create hybrids, but sometimes several breeds over a few generations are mated. For example, the Cornish Rock is a hybrid derived from the Cornish and Plymouth Rock breeds to grow fast on a minimal amount of food. The California White is also a hybrid, not a breed. It is a white egg laying dynamo. When hybrids mate their offspring will likely be different from the parents and may not have the same utility or traits.
If someone wants to breed chickens it’s best to stick with breeds. Otherwise, hybrids are fine, but new chicks need to be purchased over time to retain their desired traits.
A great reference on many chicken breeds and genetics is STOREY’S ILLUSTRATED GUIDE TO POULTRY BREEDS, by Carol Ekarius.
Every year our flock is a different mix of breeds and hybrids. We love reading the Hoover’s Website and choosing chickens new to us. It’s hard to go wrong. They are all fascinating.