Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[ChocolateMouse]

Interesting. I see those really long, lanky, extended necks on most colors of Ameraucana, especially BBS. I guess that's not 100% correct typing. I'll keep all this in mind moving forward. They are all 'pullets' but they're all laying at this point and they'll be a year old in a couple months. The boys especially have filled out like crazy and are surprisingly beefy. I'll handle them more and see if I can get them to stand nicely for me in the future. The addition of my half-wheaten pullets to the flock seems to be making them more friendly. The half-wheatens run right up to me for food. I'm hoping the wheatens learn form them.
Thanks for answering my questions.

 

[MissLavender]

These are my girls! I don't know much about the breeds yet as I am new to chickens, but these girls were hatched from show stock according to the breeder. It doesn't matter to me either way because they're basically just pets that give me eggs, but it would be cool to get feedback from more experienced folks on their type/conformation/etc. They're BBS Ameraucanas.

 

[Alaskan]

These are my girls! I don't know much about the breeds yet as I am new to chickens, but these girls were hatched from show stock according to the breeder. It doesn't matter to me either way because they're basically just pets that give me eggs, but it would be cool to get feedback from more experienced folks on their type/conformation/etc. They're BBS Ameraucanas. View attachment 1632113

I think they look good.

Don't look like they are laying yet...

 

[MissLavender]

I think they look good.

Don't look like they are laying yet...

No, not yet! They're 2 years old and just finished a very hard, very late molt. Poor girls looked like the Skeksis from The Dark Crystal for about a month!

 

[Alaskan]

No, not yet! They're 2 years old and just finished a very hard, very late molt. Poor girls looked like the Skeksis from The Dark Crystal for about a month!

That explains the pale combs!

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

I know Ameraucanas are derived from Araucanas but I don’t know where the muffs and beard comes from.

 

[bruceha2000]

Suffice to say that it is a lot more complicated than that.

 

[Alaskan]

I know Ameraucanas are derived from Araucanas but I don’t know where the muffs and beard comes from.

The short of it is that some chickens that laid colored eggs were imported into the US from South America. From that import group some were bred to make Ameraucanas, some were bred to make Araucanas, some were just kept as Easter Eggers.

That is also why US Araucanas are totally different from the British ones.

The imports from South America were chickens that had NOT been bred to any specific standard so they had a bunch of non-uniform traits.

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

The short of it is that some chickens that laid colored eggs were imported into the US from South America. From that import group some were bred to make Ameraucanas, some were bred to make Araucanas, some were just kept as Easter Eggers.

That is also why US Araucanas are totally different from the British ones.

The imports from South America were chickens that had NOT been bred to any specific standard so they had a bunch of non-uniform traits.

But muffs and beards are not found in Quetros or Collanocas which are the two breeds that were used in the creation of the Araucana.

 

[Alaskan]

But muffs and beards are not found in Quetros or Collanocas which are the two breeds that were used in the creation of the Araucana.

Yes, I have heard that too.

But you are thinking of the imports as being distinct breeds... and things being clear cut.

In regards to how the Araucanas and Ameraucanas were developed, their exact origins, and the exact composition of their genetics, and exactly what the breeds in South America looked like way back when... it is not clear.