Breed Basics
Rare Breeds
American Game
Origin: USA Egg Colour: White, cream, light brown Recognised Colours: Reds; Duckwings; Dark Greys; Brown Reds; Ginger Breasted Ginger Reds; Blues and Duns; Piles; Whites; Blacks; Brassy Backs, Furnaces and Polecats; Spangles; Creels; Birchens Fact: In undubbed birds, the comb is acceptable in straight, pea or rose, a reflection of the mixed ancestry of this breed. |
Appenzeller Spitzhauben
Origin: Switzerland Egg Colour: White Recognised Colours: Silver Spangled, Gold Spangled, Chamois Spangled, White, Black Fact: The Appenzeller crest is forward facing, unlike that of other crested breeds found in the Australian Standards. The Appenzeller was imported into Australia in 2016. |
Breda
Origin: The Netherlands Egg Colour: White or off white Recognised Colours: Black, Blue, Blue Laced, Cuckoo, White Fact: The Breda is unique in that it does not have any comb. The Breda was imported into Australia in 2016 and to date has not attracted many followers. |
Bresse Gauloise
Origin: France Egg Colour: White Recognised Colours: Black, White Fact: In its native France, the Bresse is esteemed as a table fowl par excellence and its production is protected by law. The Bresse Gauloise was imported into Australia in 2016. |
Cochin
Origin: Asiatic Egg Colour: Tinted Recognised Colours: Buff; Black; Blue; White; Cuckoo; Partridge; Gold Laced; Gold Crele; Silver Laced Fact: Like the Brahma, originally a popular dual purpose breed of which the original stock also died out in Australia. Re-created here, again with varying degrees of success. |
Dutch Bantam
Origin: The Netherlands Egg Colour: Tinted Recognised Colours: Gold Partridge; Silver Partridge; Yellow Partridge; Blue Silver Partridge; Blue Yellow Partridge; Blue Partridge; Red Shouldered White; Cuckoo Partridge; Cuckoo; Black; White; Blue; Lavender Fact: A true bantam with no large fowl counterpart. Imported into Australia in 2014 |
Dutch Owlbeard
Origin: The Netherlands Egg Colour: White or off white Recognised Colours: Gold spangled, Yellow-white spanged, White, Moorkop Fact: The Dutch Owlbeard was amongst the breeds imported into Australia in 2016. |
Ixworth
Origin: United Kingdom Egg Colour: Tinted Recognised Colour: White Fact: The Ixworth was developed by Reginald Appleyard as a precursor to the modern broiler chicken. The Ixworth was imported into Australia in 2016. |
Japanese
Origin: Japan Egg Colour: White Recognised Colours: White; Red; Black; Blue; Lavender; Birchen; Black-tailed White; Black-tailed Buff; Cuckoo; Grey; Mottled; Buff Columbian; Brown Red; Old English Game colours Fact: A purely ornamental breed. Well known for its very short shanks. Also standardised in a Frizzled variety. |
Nankin
Origin: Asia Egg Colour: Tinted Recognised Colour: Ground colour ginger buff, black on tail and wings Fact: The Nankin is a true bantam, meaning it has no large fowl counterpart. Many buff-coloured bantams owe some of their ancestry to the Nankin bantam, which is often considered to be the original ‘buff bantam’. |
Norfolk Grey
Origin: Great Britain Egg Colour: Brown Recognised Colour: Male – Neck, back, saddle, shoulder, and wing bars silver-white; hackles with black striping; remainder black. Female – Hackle similar that of male; remainder black; throat delicately laced with silver Fact: The Norfolk Grey is one of the breeds imported into Australia in 2016. |
Orloff
Origin: Iran/Russia Egg Colour: Tinted to light brown Recognised Colours: Black, Black mottled, Cuckoo, Spangled, Mahogany, and White Fact: The Orloff was amongst the breeds imported into Australia in 2016, and to date remains in very few hands. |
Polish
Origin: European Egg Colour: White Recognised Colours: White crested Black; White crested blue; White crested Cuckoo; White crested Splash; Black; Buff; Cuckoo; White; Lavender; Splash; Silver Laced; Gold Laced; Chamois Fact: Varieties fit into three basic divisions: White Crested, which must not have a beard or muff; Self colours, which may have a beard and muff or not; and Laced varieties, which must have a beard and muff. All varieties may also have frizzled feathers. |
Serama
Origin: Malaysia Egg Colour: White to brown Recognised Colours: Any colour or combination of colours acceptable Fact: A true bantam with no large fowl counterpart, the Serama is often considered to be the smallest chicken breed. |
Rare Varieties
Belgian
Origin: Belgium Egg Colour: White or tinted Eligibility Criteria: Barbu d’Anvers - all eligible except normal quail, lavender and black; Barbu d’Uccle - all eligible except millefleur, black and black mottled; Barbu de Watermael - all eligible Fact: Barbu d’Anvers - always rose combed and clean legged; Barbu d’Uccle - always single combed and feather legged; Barbu de Watermael - always crested and clean legged. Each of the above has a rumpless version known respectively as Barbu du Grubbe, Barbu d'Everberg and Barbu Bosvoorde |
Hamburgh
Origin: British/Dutch Egg Colour: White Eligibility Criteria: In large fowl all varieties except Silver Spangled. Gold Spangled, Silver Pencilled, Gold Pencilled, Black, White & Blue large fowl may be shown. All colour varieties of bantams may be shown. Fact: Spangled varieties were developed in England, while the Pencilled varieties were developed in the Netherlands. Popular exhibition breed but some varieties extremely rare. |
Leghorn
Origin: A Mediterranean breed from Italy Egg Colour: White Eligibility Criteria: All large varieties eligible except white and brown; all bantam varieties eligible except white, black and brown Fact: The white variety was once the most popular laying breed in Australia and was used to produce first cross layers when mated with Australorps. |
Old English Game
Origin: British Egg Colour: Tinted Eligibility Criteria: Black-red partridge, blue-red dark leg, ginger, brown-red and duckwings are ineligible in large fowl; black-red, pile, duckwing, blue-red, ginger, brown-red, black, birchen, grey and crele are ineligible in bantams. Muffs and tassels in any colour are eligible in both large and bantam Fact: Old English Game bantams are one of the most popular of all exhibition breeds. |
Silkie
Origin: Asiatic Egg Colour: Tinted to cream Eligibility Criteria: In large fowl all except white (bearded and non bearded) and partridge (non bearded) are eligible; in bantams all except white are eligible Fact: The Silkie has black skin and flesh which is considered to have medicinal properties in some cultures. |
Wyandotte
Origin: American Egg Colour: Tinted Eligibility Criteria: In large fowl all colours except white, silver laced and gold laced; in bantams all colours except white, columbian, partridge, buff, silver laced and gold laced Fact: The silver laced was the first variety of the Wyandotte, the whites coming as sports from this variety. |
The Rare Poultry Breeders' Association - Promoting rare breeds and rare colour varieties of pure bred domestic fowl