Poultry English Class
The breeds of English origin are mostly utility breeds noted for their excellent fleshing properties. With the exception of Cornish, all the English breeds have white skin and red ear lobes. Except Dorking and Red Cap all other breeds of this class lay brown-shelled eggs. All are classed as broody, but this defect has been gradually eliminated by selective breeding.
Cornish
The Cornish, originally known as the Cornish Indian Game, appears to have been developed in England about the middle of the last century from crosses involving the Ascel, the Malay, and English game breeds. It is noted for its close and compact feathering and heavy flesh with a distinctive shape. The breast of the Cornish is very deep and broad, giving the shoulders great width. Cornish birds in general have pea comb. Red Cornish developed at the CARI have both single and pea comb.
Standard weight (kg): Dark and White varieties: cock, 4-5; hen, 3-4; cockerel, 3-6; pullet, 2-7. The standard weights of the white-laced Red variety (kg) are: cock, 3-6; hen, 2-7; cockerel, 3-1; pullet, 2-2.
Australorp
This breed originated from the Black Orpington and, as the name suggests, was developed in Australia. It is more upstanding and less massive in appearance than the Black Orpington and has been developed as a layer bird. The back is rather long, with a gradual sweep to the tail. The body has good depth, but the feathering fits more closely to the body than it does in the Orpington. The comb is single, the beak is black, and the shanks and toes are black or lead-black. The bottom of the feet and toes are pinkish-white. The plumage is lustrous greenish-black in all sections, the undercolour is dull black.
Standard weight (kg): Cock, 3-8; hen, 2-9; cockerel, 3-4; pullet, 2.5
Indigenous Breeds
The common country hen, the desi, is as a rule the best mother for hatching. She is a good forager. Some of the Indian fowls resemble the Leghorn in size and shape but have poor laying qualities. They are found in various colours. One variety found in India resembles the Sussex or Plymouth Rock in shape but is smaller. These birds lay fairly well and are more common in the eastern parts of the country.
The Indian birds are mostly non-descripts and are of very little value as layers. They have several local breed names such as Tenis, Naked Neck, Punjab Brown, Ghagus, Lolab, Kashmir Faberella, Tilri, Busra, Tellicherry, Danki, Nicobari and Kalahasti. There are only 4 pure breeds of fowls indigenous to India. They are the Chittagong, the Aseel, the Karaknath and the Busra. The last occurs in western India. A large number of fowls of different sizes, shapes and colours, and for the most part resembling the jungle fowls, are found all over India. They vary in appearance according to the locality in which they have been bred. These with Chittagong, Ascel, Langshan or Brahma blood in them are bigger in size and better in meat quality than the common fowls.
Aseel
Aseel is noted for its pugnacity, high stamina, majestic gait and dogged fighting qualities. The best specimens of the breed, although rare, are encountered in parts of Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. The most popular varieties are Peela (golden red), Yakub (black and red), Nurie (white), Kagar (black), Chitta (black and white spotted), Java (black), Sabja (white and golden or black with yellow or silver), Teckar (brown) and Reza (light red). Although poor in productivity, the birds of this breed are well known for their meat qualities. Broodiness is most common and the hen is a good sitter and efficient mother. They possess pea combs which are small but firmly set on the head. The wattles and ear lobes are bright red, and the beak is short. The face is long and slender, and not covered with feathers. The eyes are compact, well set and present bold looks. The neck is long, and uniformly thick but not fleshy. The body is round and short with broad breasts, straight back and close-set strong tail root. The general feathering is close, scanty and almost absent on the breast. The plumage has practically no fluff and the feathers are tough. The tail is small and drooping. The legs are strong, straight, and set well apart.
Standard weight (kg): Cocks, 4 to 5; hen, 3 to 4; cockerels, 3-5 to 4-5; pullets, 2-5 to 3.5.
Busra
This is a small to medium-sized bird and is found in small numbers in some parts of Gujarat and Maharashtra. The body conformation is typical of layers. Deep-bodied, light feathered and alert. Wide variation in body colour. A poor layer and not much resistant to parasitic and other diseases.
Chittagong
It is also known as the Malay. This breed is found mostly in eastern India. These birds are large, the cock measuring sometimes 75 cm from beak to toe. A dual-purpose breed with poor mothering ability. The adult birds are very strong and hardy with a quarrelsome temperament. The small pea comb resembles a small lump of tiny warts. The head is long; the beak is long and yellow. The wattles are red and very small, and hardly visible in the hen. The car lobes are small, usually red and at times admixtured with a little white. The eyebrows are prominent and overhanging. The breast is broad, deep and fleshy; the shoulder is broad with slight narrow loins. The wings project at the shoulders and are carried high. The legs are yellow and feather-less. The plumage is close to the body, firm, short and glossy. Standard plumage colour is lacking but the buff, white, black, dark brown and grey varieties are recognized.
Kadagaknath
The original name of the breed seems to be Kalamasi, meaning a fowl with black flesh. However, it is popularly known as Karaknath. It is bred by the tribals in Jhabua and Dhar Districts in western Madhya Pradesh. The eggs are light brown. The day-old chicks are bluish to black with irregular dark stripes over the back. The adult plumage varies from silver and gold-spangled to bluish-black without any spangling. The skin, beak, shanks, toes and soles of feet are slatelike in colour. The comb, wattles and tongue are purple. Most of the internal organs show intense black colouration which is pronounced in trachea, thoracic and abdominal air sacs, gonads and at the base of the heart and mesentery. Varying degrees of black colouration are also seen in the skeletal muscles, tendons, nerves, meninges, brain etc. The blood is darker than normal blood. The black pigment has been due to deposition of melanin. The flesh, although repulsive to look at, is delicious. A medium layer lays about 80 eggs per year. The bird is resistant to diseases in its natural habitat in free range but is more susceptible to Marek’s disease under intensive rearing conditions.
Standard weight (kg): Cock, 1-5; hen, 1-0.