Araucana or Americana...how do I tell the difference?

[WillowWoodsFarm]

I just got 6 new chickens and I am not sure if they are Araucanas or Americanas, how do you tell the difference? A friend of the family is friends with this guy that just broke up with his gf and wanted all the farm animals gone because apparently he built the farm for her because she likes animals so I went down to look at the chickens and take them as long as they looked healthy, which they did. I was able to get 6 to start, 1 roo and 5 hens. From looking at pictures, I think the roo is a Gold Duckwing Araucana. the hens do have the feather puff things on their cheeks but they are not as big as I have seen in some pictures. I dont have a camera right now but I might be able to get some pics on my husbands camera phone when he comes home. Thanks in advance!

 

[sunny & the 5 egg layers]

I believe that Aracaunas do not have a tail. But americanas do have a tail.

Good Luck with them!

 

[wolftracks]

Quote:
Not all Araucanas are not always tailless. The tuffed birds are Araucanas and the muffed birds are Ameraucanas. That is unless they are EEs.

 

[WillowWoodsFarm]

Quote:
Not all Araucanas are not always tailless. The tuffed birds are Araucanas and the muffed birds are Ameraucanas. That is unless they are EEs.

Oh Lord, now I am really confused, lol....tuffed...? muffed....? Some of them do not have tails and some do. The roo has a beautiful long fluorescent tail!

 

[farmerChef]

http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry//CGA/Arau/BRKAraucanas.html

Feathersites page

 

[Stacykins]

Go go action pictures! Pictures sometimes are better than descriptions

Picture of a bird that is clearly rumpless. No tail, tailbone, or oil gland.

These are tufts that Araucanas have. Basically poofs of feathers that grow on a fleshy peduncle. Can be on one side, both sides, and some birds even have more than two tufts (not common)

Here you can see them on both sides. They are uneven, but clearly visible.

It is true that not all Araucanas are rumpless, but it is a desired trait. Rumplessness is a dominant gene, as is tufting. The tufting gene is lethal if an embryo is homozygous for the gene, the rumpless gene is not lethal at all. Any easy way to know if the birds are Easter Eggers or Araucanas....is did they come from a hatchery? No hatchery sells purebred Araucanas, just a kinda mutt bird that may or may not have the blue egg gene.

 

[wolftracks]

Oh such pretty birds! I love them.

 

[hdowden]

if you can get pics it would help