Mericanel Della Brianza

Mericanel della Brianza is a small Italian bantam chicken from Brianza, the Lombard area north of Milan. The name comes from local usage for little bantam or Americanina chickens, but the type is treated today as a regional Italian breed. Birds are compact and lively, with a neat single comb, alert carriage, and a tail carried high for their size. Plumage occurs in several exhibition colors, while the main impression is of a hardy village bantam rather than a miniature of a large production breed.

In human care it is kept mostly by hobby breeders, conservation-minded smallholders, and exhibition fanciers. Hens lay small eggs and may be useful broodies, making them handy in mixed poultry yards where tiny hens can hatch valuable clutches. Their active temperament suits a secure run or supervised free range; low body weight does not protect them from predators. Breeding programs usually focus on maintaining the Brianza type, size, and color, since indiscriminate crossing can quickly turn a rare local bantam into ordinary mixed bantam stock.