Red Junglefowl

From ArticleWorld

Red Jungle fowl may be termed as the ancestors of all our domestic chickens based on comments and observations made by Darwin. . They were first domesticated in Asia, somewhere around 5000 years ago, where they are native. Some of the less specialized domestics, such as some Games and the Brown Leghorns, retain color patterns very similar to that of their wild ancestors.

Distribution

The red jungle fowl is the tropical cousin of the Pheasant. In the wild the Red Jungle Fowl is seen primarily in forests in Southeast Asia, Pakistan and India and down to Malaysia and Indonesia. Some kind of sub-species of the Jungle fowl also seems to flourish in Myanmar, Java and Vietnam. The domesticated varieties are seen worldwide. Today's wild Red Jungle Fowl may have genetic contamination from today's domestic chickens.

History

The Red Jungle fowl was first domesticated in India about 3200 B.C. and in China about 1400 B.C. The Red Jungle Fowl is possibly the oldest bird to be domesticated. The popularity of the domestic Red Jungle Fowl quickly spread to Europe. Interestingly, their original popularity was not for eating but for cockfighting and use in religious rituals. The farming for meat and eggs came later.

Physical characteristics

The Red Jungle fowl has long, strong legs that end in two four clawed feet that are used for scratching. The hardy bill is also voluntarily used for the same. The bird has areas of bare skin around his eyes, combs and wattles and spurs on the backs of their legs which are used for fighting. They have curved rounded wings that enable swift flight. They can typically fly for very short periods of time and generally go to roost on tops of trees at night. The female Red Jungle Fowl is substantially smaller than the male.

The male Red Jungle Fowl has quite striking colors with a plumage of russet-gold as well as red and deep green. The tail feathers are long and green. The hen’s plumage is buff and russet in color.