Silkie

It is unknown exactly where or when these fowl with their singular combination of attributes first appeared, but the most well documented point of origin is ancient China. Other places in Southeast Asia have been named as possibilities, such as India and Java. The earliest surviving Western written account of Silkies comes from Marco Polo, who wrote of a "furry" chicken in the 13th century during his travels in Asia. In 1598, Ulisse Aldrovandi, a writer and naturalist at the University of Bologna, Italy, published a comprehensive treatise on chickens which is still read and admired today. In it, he mentions "wool-bearing chickens" and ones "clothed with hair like that of a black cat". Silkies most likely made their way to the West via the Silk Route and maritime trade. The breed was recognized officially in North America with acceptance into the Standard of Perfection in 1874. In the 21st century, Silkies are one of the most popular and ubiquitous ornamental breeds of chicken. They are often kept as ornamental fowl or pet chickens by backyard keepers, and are also commonly used to incubate and raise the offspring of other chickens and waterfowl like ducks, geese and game birds such as quail and pheasants. ==Characteristics==

Silkies are considered a bantam breed in some countries, but this varies according to region and many breed standards class them officially as large fowl; the bantam Silkie is actually a separate variety most of the time. Almost all North American strains of the breed are bantam-sized, but in Europe the standard-sized is the original version. However, even standard Silkies are relatively small chickens, with the males weighing only , and females weighing . It has been compared to silk, and to fur. The overall result is a soft, fluffy appearance. Their feathers lack functioning barbicels, and are thus similar to down on other birds. This characteristic leaves Silkies unable to fly.), meaning 'black-boned chicken'. Other wu gu ji may not share characteristics of the Taihe breed, such as the mulberry comb, white fur, blue ears, and polydactyly. Melanism which extends beyond the skin into an animal's connective tissue is a rare trait, and in chickens it is caused by fibromelanosis, which is a rare mutation believed to have begun in Asia. The Silkie and several other breeds descended from Asian stock possess the mutation. Disregarding color, the breed does not generally produce as much as the more common meat breeds of chicken. The Australian Poultry Standard and British Poultry Standard call for Silkie bantams much smaller; in the Australian, the standard weights are 680 g (25 oz) for males and 570 g (20 oz) for females. The British standard weight for bantam Silkies is 600 g (22 oz) for males, and 500 g for females (18 oz). Polydactyly Silkies are also known for their polydactyly, usually manifesting as an additional 1–2 digits in the foot. The genetic cause of this extra digit formation has been shown to be a SNP in a regulator of the SHH gene, called the ZPA Regulatory Sequence (ZRS). This causes ectopic SHH expression in the anterior of the developing limb bud, leading to increased tissue growth and digits. While the feet of the Silkie display polydactyly, the wings have the standard tridactyly (three digit) arrangement. The Japanese Silkie initially develops additional digits in the wing as an embryo, but these are lost prior to hatching. The genetic cause behind Silkie polydactyly differs from those that cause polydactyly in the Dorking chicken breed, which is due to ectopic FGF4 expression in the AER, with ectopic SHH a secondary effect. ==Use==

Silkies lay a fair number of eggs, ranging from white to cream or light tan, but production is often interrupted due to their extreme tendency to go broody. A silkie hen can produce 100 eggs in an ideal year. Their capacity for incubation, which has been selectively bred out of most fowl bred especially for egg production, is often exploited by poultry keepers by allowing Silkies to raise the offspring of other birds. == In cuisine ==

The black meat of a Silkie is generally considered an unusual attribute in European and American cuisines. A few fusion restaurants in metropolitan areas of the West have also cooked it as a part of traditional American or French cuisine, such as in confit. == Gallery ==

File:Coq poule soie rouge.jpg|The red File:Coq negre soie.jpg|The buff File:Poule Soie splash.jpg|The splash File:Poule soie coucou.jpg|The cuckoo File:Silkie_eggs.jpg|Eggs == References ==