Ancona Chicken

Breed Club Secretary

Mr P. E. Smedley
Philip Leckby House, Flaxton, North Yorkshire,
YO6 7QZ
UK

Image

n/a

History

The Ancona Chicken is named after the province of Ancona in Italy from where specimens were brought to the UK and shown in 1851 (for the Great Exhibition). Believed by many to be closely related to the original Mottled Lehghorn further imports in the 1890's and later from both America and Italy concentrated the breed characteristics to the spangled fowl of today. The Ancona Chicken takes its name from the City of Ancona, a port in Italy, from which the first Ancona Chickens were shipped to England.

The Ancona Chicken went to America from England in 1888.

Within Italy they were found in reds, browns and white which would account for the occasional copper appearing in neck hackles it being a genetic throwback.

Characteristics

This calls for the comb to be single or rose with long wattles as in other Mediterranean breeds with a white v shaped tip to the feathers and beetle green metallic sheen to the feathers.

Available large and miniature. Can be flighty. Bold active birds excellent foragers. Very good laying average with a good food / egg conversion due to light body wieghts. This is a non-sitting fowl. They are excellent layers of white shelled eggs and have yellow skin.. The cockerels are slow and difficult to fatten.

Breed Tips

For laying rather than showing use the lighter birds especially in the under fluff. Check also for a very upright tail discarding any squirrel tails as they are normally poor layers.

For breeding the birds with no white splashing and no white in the under fluff are the best consistently.

Supreme layers in relation to food consumption

Purpose

Egg layer

Classification

Light / Soft feather

Origin

Mediterranean

Egg Color

White to cream

Egg Numbers

160 / 180 per annum