Estaires chicken

Breed of chicken

Male:
2.2 kg^[1]
Female:
2.2 kg^[1]

ClassificationEEFrance^[2]

Chicken
Gallus gallus domesticus

The Poule d'Estaires (French pronunciation: [pul detɛʁ]) is a breed of domestic chicken from the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of north-eastern France. It is a variety of the Langshan breed imported to England from China in 1872, and exported from there to Europe soon after.^[3]^[4] Some were raised in the Pas-de-Calais département, and others in the neighbouring Nord département, particularly in the areas of Estaires, La Gorgue, Laventie and Merville, from which birds were supplied to Lille.

A breeders' club was formed in 1999, and in 2004 the breed came under the protection of the Centre Régional de Ressources Génétiques, the genetic resource centre of the Nord – Pas de Calais region.

Characteristics

The Estaires breed is closely similar to the Croad Langshan: the comb is small and regularly serrated, the legs are dark slate-blue or almost black and are slightly feathered. The plumage is black with beetle-green lights;^[3] there are also gold- and silver-necked colour variants.^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b Breed data sheet: D'estaires/France. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed August 2014.
^ ^a ^b Liste des races et variétés homologuée dans les pays EE (28.04.2013). Entente Européenne d’Aviculture et de Cuniculture. Archived 16 June 2013.
^ ^a ^b La Poule d'Estaires (in French). Espaces Naturels Régionaux Nord - Pas de Calais. Accessed August 2014.
^ Victoria Roberts (2008). British poultry standards: complete specifications and judging points of all standardized breeds and varieties of poultry as compiled by the specialist breed clubs and recognised by the Poultry Club of Great Britain. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN 9781405156424. p. 93, 126