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Author: Grant Brereton

Orpington Chickens
Chicken Breeds

Orpington Chickens

The Orpington fowl is more impressive in the flesh than in photographs that accompany the various books on pure breeds of poultry. 

With its abundance of feathers, the large fowl Orpingtons fill their show pens and are a sight to behold. The bantams – a miniature version of this magnificent breed – are still relatively big birds and equally eye-catching and impressive.

white cockerels
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Why is my Cockerel White?

My first flock of hens were some Warren Browns, and were essentially spent stock from a local egg producer. My first cockerel was a traditionally

Barred Wyandottes
Chicken Breeds

Barred Wyandottes

Grant Brereton, a leading authority on poultry plumage genetics examines the Barred Wyandotte, providing us with some tips on their genetics and breeding.

Dominent White
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

The Dominant White Gene

The word ‘gene’ is enough to put many people off when it comes to poultry articles. However, let me assure you, I don’t intend to

Prepotent Males
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Success Breeding Chickens: Prepotent Males

I have read with great interest the breeding articles by Stan Simister (Creating a Strain), Derek Alsop’s response and more recently, Robin Ramus’ Federation Interview

Poultry Genetics Black and Red Pigments
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Poultry Plumage: How it Begins…

Anyone writing an article on the subject of poultry plumage has to begin with the 2 pigments that account for all the beautiful colours and

Silver Laced Wyandotte Chickens
Chicken Breeds

Wyandotte Chickens

Breed InFocus Wyandotte chickens have no less than 13 standardised colour varieties in the British Poultry Standards and boasts the most clubs of any poultry

Ancona Chickens
Chicken Breeds

Ancona Chickens

Ancona Chickens take their name from the eastern Italian City of Ancona. It is thought they first reached the shores of England in 1851. There are several views about the origins of the Ancona, some believing that it is very similar to the original Mottled Leghorn.

Lavender Gene
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

The Lavender Gene

The lavender variety of poultry is very beautiful. The effect is born from the lavender gene being present in a black fowl and reducing the quantity

Sex Linked Crosses
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Sex-Linked Crosses and their Offspring

Crossing genetically gold and silver birds can result in a useful sex linkage. Still, it only works one way around, and there are often questions about the offspring they produce.

Genetic Faults
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Recessive Genes / Faults

When assessing your rearing stock and noticing an obvious fault, it can be very disheartening. An otherwise-fine specimen is ruined for show and breeding. However, If

Black and White
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Poultry Genetics: Black and White

Black crossed to white? A common question in relation to breeding is: what will be the outcome of crossing a black to a white fowl? The answer

Silver Dutch Bantam
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

The Other Type of Gold (Red)

When learning about how Gold and Silver genes work in poultry, it can be very gratifying to realise that much can be made of the sex-linked

Questioning Colour
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Questioning Colour

As I alluded to in a recent article on the subject, there are many factors that got me interested in colour genetics of poultry. One of

Poultry Breeding & Genetics

Breeding in Numbers

Whether you are an experienced poultry breeder or relatively new to the hobby, there are some common factors which have to be learnt in order to

Red Jungle Fowl
Poultry Breeding & Genetics

An Introduction To Poultry Plumage

Grant Brereton, a lifelong poultry breeder, is an internationally acclaimed authority on poultry plumage genetics and has written a book and several e-books on the