Cornish

The Cornish chicken, historically called Indian Game in Britain, originated in Cornwall from crosses among English gamefowl and large Asian game-type birds such as Malay and Aseel ancestry. It is a heavy, broad-breasted breed with short legs, a wide-set stance, tight feathering, and a pea comb. Standard Cornish are most familiar in dark, white, and white laced red varieties, with bantams also kept for exhibition. Their deep breast and compact body made the breed central to the development of modern meat chickens, especially when crossed with fast-growing White Plymouth Rock lines.

Heritage Cornish are not the same as commercial Cornish Cross broilers, which have been selected for very rapid growth. Traditional birds grow more slowly, lay fewer eggs than layer breeds, and can be less agile because of their weight and build. Housing should give them dry footing, shade in hot weather, and lower roosts that reduce strain on legs and breastbone. Breeders pay close attention to fertility, leg soundness, and width without producing birds so heavy that natural movement and mating suffer.

Colors: Barred, Birchen, Black, Blue, Brown, Buff, Columbian, Crele, Cuckoo, Duckwing, Gold, Gold Laced, Laced, Lavender, Mille Fleur, Mottled, Partridge, Penciled, Porcelain, Red, Silver, Silver Laced, Spangled, Splash, Wheaten, White