Gallus gallus domesticus
Appearance: Chickens come in a wide variety of colors from black to white, red to green, and everything in between. Males tend to have bigger combs (fleshy growth found on the forehead) and longer tail feathers although with cross-breeding, sometimes females will have those features as well.
History: The earliest evidence of domesticated chickens comes from the Indus River civilization from around 3300 BCE. Chickens, depending on the breed, are used mainly for their meat and eggs. They were originally domesticated from the red jungle- fowl originally found in Southeast Asia.
Range: Domestic chickens are found throughout the world.
Diet: In the wild, chickens eat seeds, insects, small reptiles, and sometimes small mice. Here at the nature center, we give them seeds, fruits, and vegetables.
Our Flock
Date of Birth: February 5, 2018
Our chickens were hatched here at the WNC Nature Center.
What Makes Them Unique? We have 5 breeds of chicken here at the WNC Nature Center – Black Australorp, Dominique, Easter Egger, Leghorn, and Rhode Island Red. The black australorp is identifiable by their dark plumage. The Dominique have a checkered pattern of plumage. The Leghorn breed has white plumage while the Rhode Island red are more orange in color. The easter egger breed is the more colorful breed with feathers of various colors.