Géline de Touraine

The Géline de Touraine is a French chicken from the Touraine region of the Loire Valley. It is traditionally a black-plumaged farm bird with a dual-purpose role, valued for eggs and table qualities. The word Géline is an old term for hen, and the breed has been revived as both a regional poultry product and a heritage chicken. Its appearance is plain in the best sense: dark feathers, a practical body, and a central French farm identity.

For keepers, the Géline de Touraine is useful where heritage production matters. It needs secure housing, balanced feed, and enough space to stay active, like other medium farm breeds. Breeders should select for black plumage, sound conformation, fertility, and productive hens, while avoiding loss of utility in pursuit of surface appearance alone. Because the breed carries regional food and preservation importance, source matters. Buyers should ask whether birds come from a maintained line and whether selection favors exhibition, farm output, or conservation.