September is National Chicken Month
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Throughout September, people are celebrating National Chicken Month.
The domestication of the bird dates back to at least 2000 B.C. and its ancestry can be traced to four species of wild jungle fowl from Southeast Asia, PennState Extension says.
Prior to domestication, people kept chickens for cockfighting, which may have influenced the distribution of the birds around the world.
Now that you’ve had that little history lesson, think about these 10 interesting chicken facts next time you cook some up for dinner.
1. Top chicken exporters
The top five exporters of fresh chicken in 2017 were:
- Netherlands – US$1.4 billion
- Poland – US$896.6 million
- Belgium – US$651 million
- United States – US$591 .7 million
- Germany – US$464.4 million
The top five exporters of frozen chicken during that same year were:
- Brazil – US$6.4 billion
- United States - $US2.6 billion
- Netherlands – US$1.1 billion
- Hong Kong – US$834.7 million
- Poland – US$594.9 million
2. Once considered sacred
Ancient Roman priests used chickens to determine if omens were good or bad. The priests would bring the chickens into the Senate and feed them grain. If the chickens ate the grain while stamping their feet, the omen was favourable. If the chicken refused to eat, the omen was bad and would be abandoned.
The priests sometimes manipulated the outcome by leaving the chickens in a cage for an extended period, ensuring they would eat the grain once released.
3. Subject of Greek mythology
The Ancient Greek word for rooster is “alectryon.” The word comes from the story of a soldier with the same name.
Ares, the Greek god of war, instructed Alectryon to stand guard outside his door while he courted Aprhodite. But the young soldier fell asleep, allowing other gods to foil Ares’s plan.
As punishment for failing his task, Ares turned Alectryon into a rooster that always crowed at sunrise.
4. Genome sequencing
American, European and Asian researchers genome sequenced the chicken in 2004, making it the first type of bird to undergo this process. In 2008, scientists concluded that chickens can be linked to the Tyrannosaurus rex.
5. Dance
Wener Thomas, a Swiss accordion player, is responsible for bringing the musical composition known as the Chicken Dance to the world in the 1950s.
6. More of them than us
The United Nations estimated that about 19 billion chickens existed in the world in 2002. So, with a global population of about 7.6 billion people, that means that about three chickens existed for every person on the planet.
7. Jet fuel
The longest chicken flight ever recorded was about 13 seconds, but the bird could have a large impact on how humans fly around the world.
In 2011, NASA performed tests using chicken fat as jet fuel. Scientists determined the fuel was cleaner and better for the environment.
8. Eggs of a different colour
Most people are familiar with hens laying white or brown eggs. But hens can lay different coloured eggs based on genetics.
Amerucana hens can lay blue eggs while an Olive Egger produces olive-green eggs.
9. Worth up to US$2,500 each
A rare breed of chicken can come with a high price. The Ayam Cemani, from Indonesia, has a dominant gene that causes everything on the bird to be black including its feathers, beak and internal organs. The breed has been called the “Lamborghini of poultry,” and owning one at about US$2,500 per bird is considered good luck.
10. Oldest joke in the book
The chicken is the subject of one the oldest questions, “Why did the chicken cross the road?” The riddle first appeared in an 1847 episode of The Knickerbocker, a monthly New York magazine.
The joke ran in the magazine as follows:
“There are 'quips and quillets' which seem actual conundrums, but yet are none. Of such is this: 'Why does a chicken cross the street? Are you 'out of town?' Do you 'give it up?' Well, then: 'Because it wants to get on the other side!'”
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