Beijing Oil Chicken is a special and high-quality local chicken breed unique to the Beijing area, with a history spanning over 300 years. Its original habitat lies to the north of Beijing, around the Anding Gate and Desheng Gate, with the greatest concentration found in the rural areas of Datuan and Wali in Chaoyang District. This breed is known for being a dual-purpose chicken, valued both for its meat and eggs. It has a distinctive appearance, featuring a phoenix-shaped crest, feathered legs, and a bearded mouth, along with fine meat quality, excellent egg production, strong vitality, and stable genetics.
The Beijing Oil Chicken is medium-sized with attractive plumage, typically reddish-brown or yellow. The reddish-brown variety is smaller in size, while the yellow variety is larger. The chicks are covered in soft yellow or light brown. They also exhibit distinct characteristics like a crown of feathers on the head, feathered legs, and beard-like feathers around the chin, which make them particularly endearing. Adult chickens have thick, fluffy feathers. Roosters have bright, vibrant plumage, with a raised head and black tail feathers, while hens have slightly raised heads and tails, with a compact body. The breed’s unique feather characteristics, including the crest, feathered legs, and beard, give it the nickname “Three Feathers” (Phoenix head, feathered legs, and bearded mouth).
Beijing Oil Chickens grow slowly. Their skin is slightly yellow, tight, and well-muscled with good fat distribution, giving the meat a fine texture and rich flavor. At birth, chicks weigh about 38.4g, and at 4 weeks, they weigh around 220g. By 8 weeks, they reach 549g, and at 12 weeks, they weigh 959.7g. At 16 weeks, they weigh about 1,228.7g, and by 20 weeks, adult roosters weigh around 1,500g, while hens weigh about 1,200g.
This breed starts laying eggs at around 170 days old, with a fertilization rate of 95%, a hatchability rate of 90%, and a chick survival rate of 97%. The mortality rate of chicks is 2%. Each hen lays about 120 eggs per year, with eggs weighing around 54g and having a light brown shell. Some individuals also exhibit broodiness.
Beijing Oil Chicken is a unique and resilient breed with stable genetics and excellent meat and egg quality. It is a precious local breed in China, with promising prospects for development and application.
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