Orpington chicken

Orpington
	A buff hen
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Standard	The Orpington Club (UK); Orpington Club of Australia;
Traits
Weight	Male: 3.60–4.55 kg; Female: 2.70–3.60 kg;
Skin colour	white
Egg colour	brown
Comb type	medium single
Classification
APA	English
PCGB	soft feather: heavy
	Chicken; Gallus gallus domesticus;

The Orpington is a British breed of chicken. It was bred in the late nineteenth century by William Cook of Orpington, at that time in Kent in south-east England.^[5]^: 115 It was intended to be a dual-purpose breed, to be reared both for eggs and for meat, but soon became exclusively a show bird.^[6]^[7]

History

The original Black Orpington was bred by William Cook in 1886 in Orpington, which at that time was in Kent in south-east England.^[5]^: 115 He crossed Minorcas, Langshans and Plymouth Rocks to create a new hybrid bird. He selected a black bird that would exhibit well by hiding the dirt and soot of London.^[8]^: 158 When the breed was shown in Madison Square Gardens in 1895, its popularity soared.^[5]^: 115 Cook also bred the Orpington Duck.^[9]^: 74

Seven colour varieties are recognised by the Poultry Club of Great Britain: black, blue, buff, cuckoo, jubilee, spangled and white.^[10]^: 248 The Entente Européenne recognises thirteen colours, and lists two more.^[11] In the United States four colours – black, blue, buff and white – were added to the Standard of Perfection of the American Poultry Association in 1960.^[3]

A bantam Orpington was bred by Herman Kuhn in Germany in the early twentieth century.^[8]^: 254 Only the colours black, blue, buff and white are recognised by the Poultry Club of Great Britain,^[10]^: 249 but several others have been bred;^[8]^: 254 the Entente Européenne lists sixteen, of which eleven are recognised.^[11] The bantam rarely takes flight.^[8]^: 254

In the UK, the club dedicated to the breed is the Orpington Club, which merged with the Orpington Bantam Club in 1975.^{[citation needed]} The United Orpington Club is the American breeder's club, and the Orpington Club of Australia is the Australian club for the breed.

The sex-linked recessive chocolate plumage color of chickens was first seen in Orpington bantams, and has since been introduced to other breeds.^[12]

Characteristics

There are two similar but different standards for Orpingtons. The first is published by the Poultry Club of Great Britain and asks for a weight from 3.60 to 4.55 kg for cocks and 2.70 to 3.60 kg for hens.^[1] They also ask for a heavy, broad body with a low stance, with fluffed-out feathers which make it look large; the down from the body covers most of the legs. Other characteristics of their Orpingtons are a curvy shape with a short back and U-shaped underline, and a small head with a medium single comb.

Use

Orpingtons lay about 175 to 200^[8]^: 158 medium to large^[5]^: 115 light-brown eggs a year.

It was said that at one time Orpingtons were capable of laying as many as 340^[5]^: 115 eggs per year. The decline in production was due to breeders selecting for looks over utility.^[13]^: 98