Chickens are some of the most versatile animals around. They can be great pets, and they can also be a useful source of food.

Everyone has heard the joke, “Why did the chicken cross the road?” But did you ever wonder who the original “chicken” was?

Cold climate: Silkies. Silkies aren’t great at laying eggs (you can expect fewer than 100 a year), but they’re pretty chickens, with gorgeous feathers and a wide range of colorings. Plus ...

Many black chicken breeds originated in Asia. For instance, Chinese farmers prized the Xichuan black-bone chicken and selectively bred birds with five black body parts, including feathers and skin.

Temperature Zones vary depending on breed, age, weight, climate, how well the chickens have acclimated to the climate, and health (The Chicken Health Handbook, Gail Damerow, pages 103-107).

These chickens weigh up to 11 pounds, and their fluffy feathers make them appear even larger (though there is also a smaller bantam version). Originally bred in China, Cochins were exported to the ...

The Ayam cemani chicken may be the most deeply pigmented creature on earth. Not only are the bird’s feathers, beak, comb, tongue, and toes a striking, blue-ish black, but so are its bones.

But the team also genetically modified these egg-laying chickens to disable a gene called DDX4. Without this gene, the hens do not develop primordial germ cells.