Egg Layers
Egg-laying chicken breeds tend to fall into two categories: heritage and hybrid. Heritage-breed chickens have been around since your grandparents’ time and often have multipurpose qualities, while hybrid chickens are commercially developed for a specific purpose. Some layers have both a heritage strain and a variety that has been commercially bred for production — not necessarily hybrid, but commercialized — so be sure to ask your source which you’re getting if this distinction matters to you.
Heritage Chickens
“[Heritage] breeds were carefully selected and bred over time to develop traits that made them well-adapted to the local environment, and they thrived under farming practices and cultural conditions that are very different from those found in modern agriculture,” according to The Livestock Conservancy, a nonprofit that works to protect livestock and poultry breeds from extinction. The organization defines heritage chickens as those that are American Poultry Association standard breeds, meaning their parent and grandparent stock breeds were recognized by the APA prior to the mid-20th century and meet the APA Standard of Perfection guidelines; are naturally mating; have long, productive outdoor lifespans — breeding hens should be productive for five to seven years and roosters for three to five years; and have a slow growth rate, reaching appropriate market weight for the breed in no less than 16 weeks.
Hybrid Chickens
Hybrid chicken varieties have been developed by crossing certain breeds for one trait or a set of traits — in this case, primarily egg production. Whereas heritage-breed chickens might be good at egg laying and meat production, hybrid chickens will excel at one or the other. When two hybrids are bred together, you will not get the same traits as a result, so if you try to breed two Black Stars, for example, you would end up with chicks that don’t look like their parents.
Best Breeds to Keep for Eggs
There are many factors to consider when choosing the right egg-laying breed for you, from production to temperament and feed requirements. The breeds mentioned here are only a few of the many egg-laying chicken options that you have for your backyard or small-scale farm flock. Read the basics about these top egg-laying hens, but don’t stop your research here!
WHITE LEGHORNS
Originally from Italy, this layer breed is considered by many to be the best egg-laying hen around. There’s a commercial strain often used in industrial-scale egg production, as well as a heritage type. The heritage breed lays 220 to 300 large or jumbo white eggs per year; the commercial breed lays more than 300. The heritage White Leghorn likes to forage in free-range
situations, but their white color makes them attractive to predators. The commercial type has been developed for indoor egg production. Being from the Mediterranean, Leghorns are heat-tolerant, but their large combs make them prone to frostbite in frigid climates.
RHODE ISLAND REDS
This layer chicken also has a commercial and a heritage strain. Both do well in outdoor egg-production systems. Developed in Rhode Island, this breed lays extra-large brown eggs — 250 or more each year beginning at 6 months of age — and adapts well to most climates. The variety with a rose comb does better in cold environments than that with a single comb. The heritage strain is considered a dual-purpose meat-and-egg bird.
BLACK STARS
This is a hybrid sex-link chicken, meaning it can be sexed at the time of hatching because females are born one color and males are born another. Also called a Black Sex Link, the Black Star was developed by crossing two other popular egg-laying chickens: Barred Rocks and Rhode Island Reds. Black Stars start laying brown eggs around 5 months of age and will lay as many as five each week. They are hardy in most climates.
Black Stars have interesting plumage:
The females are black with gold hackle and breast feathers, and the males are black with white barring. These are large birds and are considered by some to be dual-purpose.
RED STARS
Also called Red Sex Links, Red Stars are also hybrid sex-link egg-layers. They start laying large brown eggs at 22 weeks, and many say this is its best egg-laying breed. You can expect more than 250 eggs per year from these hens.
Red Stars are hardy in a range of weather conditions and are easy to raise. Hens are reddish-brown with white throughout, and roosters are white.
PLYMOUTH ROCKS
Also called a Barred Rock, these egg-laying chickens a large, dual-purpose breed that usually lay more than 200 large brown eggs each year. This breed was developed in New England and, until World War II, was the most popular breed in the United States.
The Plymouth Rock is a foundation breed to the commercial broiler chickens produced today. Plymouth Rocks do well in free-range and enclosed living situations. In extreme cold, their combs can become frostbitten.
MARANS
The Marans Chicken Club
USA describes the breed as
“a medium-size bird with the character of a rustic farm hen.”
Marans are dualpurpose, laying as many as 200 eggs annually and making decent table birds.
Marans originated in the port city of Marans,
France. Apa-approved plumage varieties include White, Black Copper and Wheaten. Other varieties also exists. Pure Marans hens lay distinct rich, coppery-brown eggs, which are a result from a recessive gene; when crossed with another breed, the eggs appear much lighter.
ORPINGTONS
Orpingtons come from England and are usually called by their color: Buff, Black, Blue or White. Buff Orpingtons are the most popular of this large, dual-purpose heritage breed.
An Orpington hen will lay large or extralarge eggs, though at 175 to 200 eggs per year, they’re not as prolific as some breeds. What they lack in egg-laying abilities, they make up for in meat production. Because they are large, Orpingtons do best in cool to cold climates.