Burmese chicken
The Burmese is a very rare British true bantam: white, crested, short-legged and feather-footed. It was revived from near-extinction twice.
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The Burmese is a pure-bred chicken breed in the PCGB Rare True Bantam class. Its origin is given as Burma (Myanmar); imported c.1880. It appears on the RBST Watchlist as a priority breed, so keepers of pure stock help conserve it.
It is kept in bantam form. Recognised colours: White.
It lays cream eggs.
Compiled from poultryclub.org, rbst.org.uk, en.wikipedia.org, feathersite.com. See sources
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Identity
- Species
- Chicken
- Type
- Pure breed
- PCGB class
- Rare True Bantam
- Origin
- Burma (Myanmar); imported c.1880
History
Edward Blyth mentioned Burmese bantams in 1847, and Darwin used one as an example of a creeper fowl in 1868. Around 1880, a British army officer in Burma sent a trio to a fellow officer in Scotland. The hens died, and Victorian bantam breeder William Flamank Entwisle bred the surviving cock to Sultan bantams, then bred back towards the original. By the First World War it was thought extinct. Andrew Sheppy, founder of the Rare Poultry Society, was given some around 1970 and revived the breed using White Booted bantams.
Appearance
PCGB recognises only white. Crest, single comb, very short legs, foot feathering and vulture hocks.
Recognised colours
White
Size and weight
- Forms
- Bantam
Eggs
- Egg colour
- Cream
Temperament
Not recorded yet.
Hardiness
Not recorded yet.
Broodiness
Not recorded yet.
Flying
Not recorded yet.
Suitability
- Good to know
- Genuine stock is held by the National Poultry Collection at Cobthorn. A Dutch attempt to recreate it from scratch does not closely match the historic birds.
Conservation status (RBST)
A priority breed on the Rare Breeds Survival Trust Watchlist.
Breed club
- The Rare Poultry Society, umbrella · Website
Sources
This page is compiled from:
Review
Some details are still being checked.
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