!!!!!!CHICKEEEEN!!!!!!

Hi my name is Romeo and I am learning how to do an information report. My report is on chickens. I would like it if you would have a read and see what awesome creatures chickens are and learn some interesting facts about chickens.

Chicken 

DID you know that a chicken is related to a T-Rex guess how big the T-Rex would be beside the chicken.

Characteristics of a chicken.

A chicken is a bird and it is the most common bird

in the world.  A chicken is different to other birds because they have a comb and wattles which are extra bits of skin on their head and face.  There are lots of different breeds but they are similar in having squat round bodies, dense feathers and high arched tails. A chicken has 4 toes on each foot.  A chicken like all birds lays eggs.  They have coloured ear lobes that determine the colour of their eggs.  A male chicken is called a rooster and a female chicken is called a hen.  Roosters look different from hens because they are bigger, leaner and have brightly coloured feathers.  They also wattles and combs are bigger and brighter.  A rooster also makes a Cockadoodledo sound to mark its territory.  A hen looks different from a rooster because they have lighter feathers and some are even pale white.  They do not crow like a rooster but make a clucking sound when they lay their eggs. 

Some different breeds of chickens that have interesting features are

Silky chickens.  They are white chickens with feathers that feel like silk and satin.  They have black skin and bones.  They also have 5 toes on each foot instead of 4.

Araucana Chickens also known as the easter egg chicken have massive ear lobes that are coloured blue or green. This means they lay blue or green eggs.

Golden Laced Wyandotte is a beautiful chicken with a rose comb and gold lace like feathers.

Chickens habitat 

Chickens have been domesticated for a long time so they now live in close proximity to humans.  We would say that they would live in backyards or farms.  The only chicken that lives in the wild is the red jungle fowl which lives in jungles in Asia.

For a chicken to live happy it needs space to walk around and search for food, spread its  wings and keep its mind active.  Chickens also need a chicken coop to roost at night.  Chickens can be found in most countries around the world so they can survive in different climates.  Some breeds of chickens like the Golden Laced Wyandotte are more suited to climates and other breeds like the Andalusians are more suited to warmer climates.

ENEMIES

A chicken that lives on a farm usually lives in a flock of 2 or more chickens with a rooster that looks after the hens.  This is because there are animals that like to steal chickens and eat them.  Not just humans! The animals are coyotes, foxes, hawks, racoons, mink, owls and domesticated dogs.  Snakes also steal eggs and sometimes the chicks.  To protect the chicken you need to cover the coop with special wire to stop the predator from getting in.  Some predators even dig under the wire.  A rooster helps because he sounds the alarm by crowing and some roosters will try and defend against small predators and birds. 

Favourite food of chickens

Chickens are omnivores and eat a variety of food.  If they are on a farm that they can roam on they will eat insects, grasses, weeds and seeds.  They also eat grains, fruit and vegetables such as broccoli, bananas, grapes, pineapple, tomatoes, celery, strawberries and apples.  Chickens also eat stones known as grit to break down their food because they don't have teeth.

Facts about chickens 

There are 5 different species of wild chicken called The Red Jungle Fowl, Sri Lanka Junglefowl, Grey Junglefowl, Green Junglefowl and Gallus gallus.Chickens lay different coloured eggs depending on the colour of their ear lobes.  Chickens with white earlobes lay white eggs. Chickens with dark or red earlobes lay brown eggs.  Araucana Chickens have faded blue or green ear lobes and lay blue or green eggs

Chickens are amazing creatures.  There is so much to love about them. Not only are they amazing to look at and watch but they are also cuddly with humans, affectionate, have great personalities and are curious about the world they live in.  

Have you ever held a chick?