Australorp

The Australorp is an Australian breed of dual purpose economically important chicken. It is a derivative of the British Black Orpington and was developed through selective breeding for laying performance with some hens laying more than 300 eggs a year. It gained global acclaim in the 1920s after shattering records for eggs laid by a chicken. Subsequently, it has since remained a viable breed in the western world. It is one of 8 poultry breeds developed in Australia and recognized by Australian Poultry Standards. The original feather color is black, which is the only color recognized in the USA, while blue and white colors are also recognized in Australia, with additional hues recognized by The Poultry Club South Africa including buff, splash, wheaten laced and golden.

History

The original stock that was foundational to Australorp was brought to Australia from England out of the Black Orpington yards of William Cook and Joseph Partington in the period from 1890 to early 1900s with Rhode Island Red. Local breeders crossed this stock and used some care in the form of out-crosses to Minorca, White Leghorn and Langshan blood lines to utilize the utility features of the imported Orpingtons. There is even a report of some Plymouth Rock blood being used. The early breeders placed an emphasis on utility features. At this time, the resulting birds were called Australian Black Orpingtons (Austral-orp).

The provenance of the name "Australorp" appears to be almost as contentious as the endeavours to secure common agreement amongst the States for an appropriate national Standard. The first claim to the name goes back to one of chicken-fancy's institutions, pre-First World War, personified by the name William Wallace Scott. From 1925 Wal Scott put his mind to getting Australorp acknowledged as a breed with the Poultry Society as he developed the breed. An equally strong claim surfaced in 1919 by Arthur Harwood who recommended that the "Australian Laying Orpingtons" be designated "Australs". Harwood proposed the letters "orp" as a suffix to reference the breed in the fowls development. Adding further international claims to the name is Britain's W. Powell-Owen who wrote the British Standard for the breed in 1921 after importing the "Australian Utility Black Orpingtons." It is accepted that the name "Australorp" had taken root in the early 1920s when the breed was marketed as worldwide. The Australorp was added into the Standard of Perfection of the American Poultry Association in 1929.

Characteristics

There are bantam and standard sized Australorps. The Australian Poultry Standards recognise three colours: black, white and blue; the same three colours are recognised by the Entente Européenne and by the Poultry Club of Great Britain. The Poultry Club South Africa recognises four additional colours: buff, splash, wheaten laced, and golden.