hen can indicate a chick, as in William Shakespeare's Enjoy Macbeth, where by Macduff laments the Demise of "all my really chickens and their dam".
The parasite Dermanyssus gallinae feeds on blood, leading to discomfort and decreasing egg generation, and functions as being a vector for bacterial conditions like salmonellosis and spirochaetosis.[70]
Chicken domestication and dispersal;[forty five] likelihood of early arrival in Americas[47][48] In line with just one early examine, one domestication celebration of the purple junglefowl in present-day Thailand gave increase to the fashionable hen with minimal transitions separating the trendy breeds.
Crowing (with audio) A male's crowing is a loud and from time to time shrill connect with, serving as being a territorial signal to other males,[thirty] As well as in response to sudden disturbances in just their surroundings.
Chicken stays are actually challenging to date, presented the little and fragile chook bones; this will likely account for discrepancies in dates supplied by diverse resources. Archaeological proof is supplemented by mentions in historical texts from the last few centuries BC, and by depictions in prehistoric artworks, such as throughout Central Asia.[sixty five] Chickens were being common through southern Central Asia because of the 4th century BC.[sixty five]
Chickens are relatively huge birds, active by working day. your body is spherical, the legs are unfeathered in most breeds, and the wings are quick.[eighteen] Wild junglefowl can fly; chickens and their flight muscles are also major to permit them to fly over a short length.[19] dimensions and coloration fluctuate extensively amongst breeds.
Fertile hen eggs hatch at the end of the incubation period, about 21 days; the chick makes use of its egg tooth to interrupt out of your shell.[32] Hens continue being over the nest for about two times after the 1st chick hatches; all through this time the recently hatched chicks feed by absorbing The interior yolk sac.
A professional hen house with open up sides boosting broiler pullets for meat Chickens farmed primarily for eggs are identified as layer hens. the united kingdom on your own consumes a lot more than 34 million eggs per day.[81] Hens of some breeds can produce about three hundred eggs per year; the highest authenticated amount of egg laying is 371 eggs in 364 days.[eighty two] immediately after 12 months of laying, the business hen's egg-laying potential declines to The purpose exactly where the flock is commercially unviable. Hens, specifically from battery cage units, are occasionally infirm or have shed an important amount of their feathers, as well as their existence expectancy has actually been diminished from close to 7 many years to less than two years.
As an example, many essential discoveries in limb growth have been produced working with hen embryos, including the discovery in the apical ectodermal ridge along with the zone of polarizing action.[98]
A hen bred for laying can make about three hundred eggs each year. you'll find several cultural references to chickens in folklore, religion, and literature.
Inbreeding of White Leghorn chickens has a tendency to lead to inbreeding depression expressed as minimized egg selection and get more info delayed sexual maturity.
Eggs of chickens from your higher-altitude location of Tibet have Unique physiological adaptations that cause a better hatching charge in very low oxygen environments.
8 working day aged chick with avian influenza Chickens are susceptible equally to parasites for example mites, and also to disorders due to pathogens including microbes and viruses.
The hen (Gallus domesticus) is a considerable and spherical quick-winged chicken, domesticated in the pink junglefowl of Southeast Asia about 8,000 several years ago. Most chickens are elevated for food, furnishing meat and eggs; Some others are saved as Animals or for cockfighting.
When eggs are placed in the hypoxic natural environment, chicken embryos from these populations Convey a great deal more hemoglobin than embryos from other chicken populations. This hemoglobin provides a larger affinity for oxygen, binding oxygen more easily.[38]