Ancona Chickens

Ancona History

The Ancona originates from the Italian province of Ancona and was bred from a mixture of breeds including the Leghorn. Their black feathering led to them being called Black Leghorns. They are tough, hardy birds and are prolific layers, producing a large number of white eggs. They were very popular as egg producing birds in Europe and arrived in England in 1888 and slightly later in America. The breed can be seen in two different varieties the single combed and less common rose combed forms. They have white earlobes and bay coloured eyes and in the single combed variety, the large comb flops backwards. The feathers are beetle green-black, tipped with white and they have yellow featherless legs and feet with some black mottling down the shanks. They have four long, well spread toes.

Ancona Behaviour

Anconas are small attractive birds which are not prone to broodiness. In fact, they are non-sitters and will produce a large number of medium size white eggs. Chicks are vigorous and mature quickly. They are alert, busy little birds and are happiest foraging in the open air. They are not happy kept in confined spaces and they also fly well so high fencing is necessary. With good care and kind treatment, they can become quite trusting and may become tame if handled from a young age. With every moult, the white spots on their plumage become bigger so the older the bird, the whiter the feathering. They are very hardy and a cock will weigh in at around 6lbs while a hen weighs approximately 4Ã‚Â½lbs. They have an average lifespan of around 8 years. There is also a bantam version.

Ancona Varieties

Single Comb and Rose Comb.

Ancona Status

Fairly common

Ancona Pictures

A splendid ancona chicken pecking around in the dirt.

Ancona chick 2 days old . They start off chestnut coloured

Young male Citron Campine about 8 weeks old

Ancona For Sale

Please note: All animals listed here are for collection only. They cannot be delivered by the seller or by Omlet. The seller will send you their contact details to arrange payment and collection.

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Latest Reviews For Ancona (5 of 11)

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Based on 11 Verified Reviews

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Ancona for sale - Paul, 27 May 2016

Does anyone know where I can order Ancona rose-comb chicks to Canada?

cool! - Alex, 11 January 2015

cool!

Ann and App - Lexie, 6 October 2013

Last spring, I bought 5 Ancona chicks and 5 Appenzeller chicks. Only 1 Ancona chick died, and I was glad that the others survived. When they grew up, I sold all but one hen, which I named Ann. She is very beautiful. I adore the way she struts around with App (my Appenzeller roo) as if she owns the place. She is very sweet and is very good with my 2 year old sister, Karlie. She is hardy, but last winter, she nearly died from the sudden coldfronts we were getting. Her egg production is about average, and her eggs are a pearly white. I must admit, however, that she isn't "the best" with gardens. She doesn't destroy them, but lately we've been having problems with her picking the ripe veggies off of their vines. All in all, I say that if you want a chicken, the Ancona is the best place to start.

- Sue, 7 March 2013

I love this breed. Independent, strong, assertive but not aggressive. Great colour and a lovely fan shaped tail but really hard to buy. After hours searching the internet for a large hen, no success. Can anyone help?

Beautiful comical compact chickens - Katrina, London, 30 September 2012

Bought my youngsters from Beacon Stud in Kent and they have been great to tame up and are now as friendly as a pet dog-lovely, healthy birds and just started laying at 15 weeks now and so we will have eggs almost every day for this first year. Spent a long time with these helpful people and was so happy with the care and attention they gave us-all good advice 1st hand and loads of tips-strongly recommended.

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Breeder Clubs for Ancona

Scottish Ancona Club

Email: phil.boy@virgin.net

Telephone: 01904 468 387