![]() ![]() If we take into account the parameters of official livestock breeding, then highsec is a leghorn hybrid. Excellent adaptability to new conditions and resistance to many diseases, along with an excellent ratio of feed costs to the amount of production received, contributes to the wide distribution of this bird. Highsec laying hens are also not deprived of the attention of poultry farmers. In private farms, they are famous for their improving qualities for local chickens. Leghorn chickens are used both in the industrial production of eggs and for home keeping. The bird is demanding on the conditions of keeping and feeding. Compared to white leghorns, brown ones acclimatize much worse. Recently, consumers prefer eggs with such a shell. There are also brown leghorns that produce dark colored eggs. ![]() The highest egg production is observed in the first year, then it falls. Early maturation, fast acclimatization, endurance - these qualities make leggorns attractive for breeding in private households. The lively temperament makes the bird be in constant motion in search of food, pebbles or insects. Breeders are working to ensure that new breeds of laying hens not only have high egg production, but also produce better quality eggs. The high productivity of poultry allows reaching new volumes in egg production. Breeds of laying hens play a decisive role in this matter. ![]() The task of modern egg poultry farming is to satisfy the population's need for food, and specifically for eggs. You want to thoroughly check each chick for a black tongue, black toes and nails, and black or dark gray fluff.Rare breeds of egg hens. A common issue is that chicks will hatch with pink or tan toe pads. Hatching Eggs - When hatching eggs from this breed, the main thing that you want to select for is pigmentation. To the best of our knowledge these are the only Swedish Black Hens in America that were imported from their native country, thus ensuring that you receive authentic stock from the original source. Greenfire Farms first imported a pair of Swedish Black Hens in 2012, and we subsequently imported unrelated stock in 2013. We have found this landrace to be hardy and easy to raise despite its rarity. Our Swedish Black Hens have roosted in the open on windy nights as cold as 20☏ without any ill effects. A Swedish poultry keeper told us that Black Hens are known for not suffering from frostbite on their combs. These birds are capable foragers and reflect the mastery that comes from the hundreds of years of free-range living enjoyed by their ancestors. Feathers can shimmer with iridescent greens and purples. Usually the birds are almost completely black although some have deep mulberry red facial skin. The hens lay white or cream-colored eggs. What is certain is that Swedish Black Hens are relatively small and sleek –the roosters weigh about 4 lbs.-and have a friendly, relaxed temperament. ![]() Some sources suggest that Swedish Black Hens made their way to the Nordic countries from seamen who traveled from Mozambique in the 1800s, although explanations vary and are often vague. (Norway and neighboring Sweden have a complex and often bloody history, but suffice to say that for a period of time Norway was a state within Sweden until Norway won independence in 1905.) A landrace of exotic black birds flourished on what is now the Sweden-Norway border, and what had probably begun as a tropical transplant to this frigid region eventually adapted to the colder climate. This same mutation may have made its way in chickens transported to Norway as many as 400 years ago. The gene promotes the proliferation of black pigment cells. The gene that causes fibromelanosis is a mutation that existed in Asia more than 800 years ago. A national poultry census in Sweden verified the existence of fewer than 500 Swedish Black Hens. Also, Swedish Black Hens are even rarer than Ayam Cemani. Despite these physical commonalities the Swedish Black Hen has a vastly different history and has over the centuries adapted to a much colder climate than the Ayam Cemani. Some claim to see differences between the Ayam Cemani and the Swedish Black Hens –for example, the Ayam Cemani have been said to be more like gamefowl in body type– but the external differences are subtle and if they exist at all can only be discerned by a highly trained eye. That is, virtually every physical feature outside and inside the Swedish Black Hen is the deepest black color. The Swedish Black Hen, or Svart Hona, has the same fibromelanistic trait as that most coveted chicken breed from Indonesia, the Ayam Cemani. ![]()
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