Chicken coops plans

Welcome to the 4S Bar’sBrown-red cockerel, Mike Gilbert breeding

Updated 4/01/02

A Special Thank You to Mr Mike Gilbert for his help in providing me with accurate information and some beautiful birds.

This unusual breed gets its name partly from the Araucana chicken, a tufted, rumpless breed, that lays blue eggs. Araucanas are named for the Araucanian Indian tribe of Chile, South America, where they were developed by a Dr. Ruben Bustos. Araucanas were imported and crossed with hens from the U.S. and thus played an early part in the breed’s history. However, no tufted, rumpless fowl were used to create any of the present-day varieties of Ameraucanas.

A look at a pair of Araucanas for comparison.Notice the ear tufts and the rumplessness:

Silver Araucanahen and rooster Araucana photos permission from the Stanfords ofBrown Egg Blue Egg, breeders of winning Araucanas and Silkies.

Ameraucanas lay colored eggs as well. They are supposed to be a shade of blue, but the eggs oftentimes are a shade of green, from pastel to olive. Breeders are hoping to correct this. This breed is often mistakenly called the “Easter Egg chicken”, but this term is better reserved for crossbred birds and those birds purchased through hatcheries. Eggs from these “Easter Egg” birds usually include a much broader range of colors, from very light brown to several shades of green, and some may even be blue. But these birds also often lack other necessary breed characteristics to be truly called Ameraucanas.

My original flock, left to right:

Snowflake – large pulletMopsey – large Polish pulletFricassee – large cockerelBoots – large cockerelChickpea – bantam cockerel

The above flock, with the exception of the Polish, consists of Easter Egg Chickens. None were true Ameraucanas, I discovered later.

The Ameraucana was recognized as a breed in the early 1980′s by both the A.P.A. and the A.B.A. Ameraucanas come in both bantam and large sizes with pea combs, red ear lobes, ear muffs and beards. The Breed Standard recognizes eight different color varieties, which are: Black, Blue, Blue-wheaten, Brown-red, Buff, Silver, Wheaten, and White.

This breed is usually a calm, friendly one – great for pets, or dual-purpose egg/meat chickens. This is a unique breed and great fun to have. The naturally colored eggs will amaze friends and make a great “show and tell” project for school, especially around St. Patrick’s Day or to celebrate Dr. Seuss’s book Green Eggs and Ham.

Here are 3 bantam Ameraucana roosters I’ve owned:

Silver roo Blue Wheaten roo Brown-red roo Note: The Silver roo pictured above has some brown on his wings and back which isn’t correct. Silvers should not have any brown on them.The Blue-wheaten didn’t have a proper comb.The Brown-red, a handsome bird, has a new home with a friend in CA.

I sadly had to give up the Am’s and other poultry. Due to having to move the birds off the farm I must bring my poultry hobby to a halt for the time being. I hope to resume again with this breed when a new farm can be found.

Color Chart

Black Large Fowl Blue Large Fowl Buff Bantams Silver Bantams Wheaten Bantams White Large Fowl Golden Quail Bantams

Color Chart photos courtesy of the Ameraucana Breeders Club

Note: Even though the Quail color is not a recognized variety yet, it is currently being worked on in the Bantams by the Klemmedson’s.

Links

For more information on this wonderful breed, go to…

Visit my Silkie chickens by clicking the following …The 4S Bar Silkies

For a great compilation of poultry breeds & species, try this site…FeatherSite

Thanks for visiting!

Jessica Sanders159 W. St. Joseph St.Easton PA 18042-6265

e-mail: Cicchibebe@aol.com

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