Leghorn (chicken)

Hen 1.7 to 2.2 kg

The Leghorn is a derived from the Italian domestic chicken breed that was bred in the United States of America from white Italian country chickens. The name comes from the Italian port city of Livorno (English: Leghorn ), from there in 1835 faucets to United States and Great Britain were brought in and bred. In 1870 they came under the name of Leghorn back to Europe.

This light and lively breed with a strong aptitude for the production of eggs and little tendency to brood to breed basis of many industrial strains of chickens, such as the White Leghorn, has become in Western countries.

The rooster weighs about 2.4 kilograms, the hen 1.7 to 2.2 kilograms. She lays about 200 white eggs of 50 to 60 grams per year.

Homozygous breeding lines (inbred lines ) of the Leghorns play an important role in the breeding of hybrid chickens. The resulting laying hybrids are no longer breed chickens. They are not suitable for breeding.

White and Italian (white ) Leghorn are not easy to distinguish for the layman. International designations are partly synonymous. But some cases they also designate a specific Zuchtrichung.

In the Federation of German race poultry ( BDRG ) and the European Association for poultry, pigeons, bird, rabbit and Caviazucht (EE) are recognized as two separate breeds Leghorn and Italians. The " Leghorn " of BDRG are the " American Leghorn " of the EA, and the dwarf Leghorn are in the EE " American dwarf Leghorn ". In Belgium and the Netherlands also yellow dwarf Leghorn are recognized in addition to the white color shock.

In addition, within the EE also "English Leghorn " in the colors blue, yellow, goldhalsig, black, with silvery white and recognized. In Belgium, there is also a standard for "English dwarf Leghorn " in the colors blue, partridge, black, silver and white. In the Netherlands they are recognized only in black and white colors.