Easter egger

In American usage, an Easter egger or Easter-egger is any hybrid or mixed-breed chicken resulting from the breeding of a bird carrying the blue-egg (oocyan) gene with one that lays brown eggs. Eggs from such a bird may be any shade of blue or brown,[1]: 175  or occasionally pink or pale yellow.[2] These birds do not constitute a breed, and so are not recognized by the American Poultry Association or the American Bantam Association.[2] They may be marketed as "Americana", but are quite different from the Ameraucana, a recognized breed.[2]

An orange chicken in a forest.
An Easter egger hen
A black hen looking at the camera
A mostly black Easter egger hen
A "Blue Easter Egger" hen. The hen has a gray body, and is looking at the camera.
A "Blue Easter Egger" hen
Eggs from an Easter egger compared with a brown one from an ISA Warren from Denmark

Characteristics

Hybrid birds of this type may be of any color. They are commonly muffed and bearded, often with a pea-comb; the wattles may be small or entirely absent. The legs can be grey, yellow, or greenish.[1]: 175  Because of their cross breeding, Easter Eggers do not have set egg, or body colors. Easter Eggers are mainly egg-laying birds, as their meat is not great. Easter Eggers are also known for being good pets around children.

References
  1. Kathy Shea Mormino (2017). [https://books.google.com/books?id=NlA0DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT175 The Chicken Chick's Guide to Backyard Chickens. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Voyageur Press, 2017. ISBN 9780760359792.
  2. Araucana; Ameraucana; Americana or the Easter Eggers. APA-ABA Youth Poultry Club. Archived 19 October 2013.
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