🐾 Chicken

Chicken

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Who it is

• Scientific name: Gallus gallus domesticus
• Family & relatives: A domestic bird in the family Phasianidae, descended from the wild red junglefowl and related to pheasants and quail.
• How to spot it: A plump farm bird with a feathered body, a fleshy red comb on its head, and a wattle under its beak.

Its body & abilities

• Size: About 30 to 45 cm tall, depending on the breed.
• Weight: Usually about 2.5 to 4 kg (5 to 9 lb) for common breeds.
• Body & adaptations: It has a strong beak for pecking, scaly clawed feet for scratching the ground, and wings too small for long flight.
• Top speed: Can scurry along the ground at about 14 km/h (9 mph) and only flutter for short hops.
• Strength: Strong legs make it a champion scratcher, digging up seeds and bugs from the soil all day.
• Senses: Excellent color vision and good hearing; it can see more colors than people can.
• Growing up: A fuzzy chick hatches from an egg after about 21 days, runs around within hours, and grows up in a few months.

Where it lives

• Habitat: Farms, backyards, and coops around the world, wherever people keep them.
• Where in the world: Kept on farms and in homes worldwide; its wild ancestor still lives in the forests of Southeast Asia.
• Territory: A flock stays near its coop and yard, with a clear order of who leads, called the pecking order.

What it eats

• Diet: An omnivore that eats seeds, plants, and small bugs, and needs fresh water every day.
• Favorite foods: Grain, seeds, greens, worms, and insects; farm chickens also eat special feed and kitchen scraps.
• How it hunts: It scratches the dirt with its feet, then pecks up the seeds, worms, and bugs it uncovers.

How it behaves

• How it moves: Walks and runs on the ground, flaps up to low perches, and mostly stays close to home.
• When it is active: Busy by day, pecking and scratching from sunrise, and roosting up high to sleep safely at night.
• Family life: Very social, living in flocks with a friendly pecking order that keeps peace among the hens.
• How it talks: Clucks, chirps, and squawks with many different calls; the rooster crows loudly to greet the morning.
• Babies: A hen lays eggs and, if a rooster is near, can sit on them for about 21 days until fluffy chicks hatch.

Its place in nature

• Role in nature: It provides eggs and helps control garden bugs; foxes, hawks, and dogs are its main predators.
• Conservation: Not a wild species; chickens are the most common bird on Earth, with billions kept by people.
• Dangers: Backyard chickens face predators and illness; safe coops and clean food help them live long, happy lives.

Life & legacy

• How long it lives: About 5 to 8 years for a well-cared-for backyard hen, sometimes longer.
• In our culture: One of the most important farm animals in history, raised for eggs and companionship on every continent.
• Where to see it: Farms, petting zoos, and backyard coops nearly everywhere people live.
• Fun fact: Chickens can remember over 100 different faces, of both people and other chickens.