Araucana Chicken
Araucana Chickens originate from South America; in fact, they’re named from the Arauca Indians from Chile. In the early 1900s, they were introduced to Europe. There are claims that they have been around already since the middle of the 16th century.
Originally these birds had large and floppy pea combs, but these have now been bred to arrive at very small irregularly-shaped pea combs. In the US, Araucanas are known as “South American Rumpless”, and they are extremely rare.
This breed of chicken has non-symmetrical tufts, even to be found in the pure-bred Araucanas. It is for this reason that Araucanas are available only through breeders, not hatcheries.
Their claim to fame is the magnificent blue shelled eggs which they lay. The Rumpless and tufts are unique to this breed.
Table of Contents
Araucana Chicken | Breed Profile
Araucana Rooster
Country of origin: | Chile |
Primary use: | dual-purpose meat/eggs |
Weight: | Male: Large: 2.7–3.2 kg |
Temperament: | Friendly, Flighty, Very Active, Quiet, Bears Confinement Well |
Recognized Varieties: | Black Breasted Red, Silver Duckwing, Golden Duckwing, Black, White |
Egg production (annual): | 170-200 |
Egg color: | Blue or Green |
Egg size: | Medium |
Comb type: | pea |
Characteristics Of The Araucana Chicken
The Araucana has facial features that are thick; they only have a small crest on their heads. They also don’t have wattles. The blue-green egg is coloredright through the shell so that even the inside is just as blue as the outside.
The hens really only lay their eggs during summer and spring months. Araucana chicken eggs are green and blue and are the most common. Colors can range from greyish or even violet-blue to turquoise or greenish-blue.
If you see eggs that are khaki or olive in color, it might suggest that the hens were crossed with other chickenbreeds. Araucana chicks can be born without tails or with tails. The ones without tails are known as “Rumpless Araucanas”.
Related Article - Frizzle Chicken Breed Profile
Araucana chickens are short and round, with an upright stance. It has a broad skull. They’ve got the unusual wart-like feature which appears on either side of their heads. These are called plicae and it’s wherethe earlobes are normally seen.
These have feathers on which make up the ear tufts and which slant backwards. Their color varieties are white, black, silver, blue, buff, cuckoo, Crele, spangled, Pyle, lavender, blue/red, black/red, golden duckwing and silver duckwing.
Behavior/Temperament
The Araucana chicks are strong, fast growers. They mature quickly. They do lean towards being broody and make superb mothers. The birds don’t mind too much being kept confined to a pen, but they do love their fresh grass.
This means the coop and run will need to be moved regularly. They are not aggressive birds, placid in nature.
What are the Pros and Cons of the Araucana Chicken?