Sussex Chicken Breed: Characteristics, Origin, Breed info, and Lifespan
The Sussex chicken breed is one of the highly prized poultry birds because of its dual-purpose nature. They are layers of large light brown eggs for you and can also be raised for meat production.
These birds are also regarded as the best backyard breeds because of their friendly and receptive nature. In this article, we have noted some of the major characteristics of the Sussex chicken breed, their origin, and their lifespan.
What is a Sussex Chicken Breed?
Sussex Chicken is a dual-purpose bird and one of England’s oldest chicken breeds. It is also one of the best egg-laying chicken breeds that require low maintenance. This socialist bird is an all-around farm fowl and pet to many.
Origin of Sussex Chickens
The Sussex Chicken originated from the United Kingdom specifically Sussex County, England. When they first originated they were regarded as the country’s pride chicken and the most popular chicken breeds in Great Britain.
The oldest variant of the Sussex chicken breed is probably the Speckled Sussex chicken.
The Speckled Sussex chicken originated in England around 43 A.D. Though these birds normally had a reddish-brown color, they now have numerous feather colors speckled throughout their body, hence the name. This was largely because of cross-breeding effects with Oriental breeds like the Brahma, Cochin, and the silver-grey Dorking.
The Speckled Sussex was first recognized as a variety of the Sussex breed where it was regarded as the Old Sussex or Kent Fowl in Sussex.
The earliest Speckled Sussex chickens were cast on the first standard poultry show as the Kentish fowl in 1845 at the London Zoo.
After the chicken fever spread which followed the Roman invasion in 43 A.D, the Sussex breed was speculated to have gone extinct, but this never really happened. Instead, they evolved into more variants of outstanding characteristics.
The decline in Sussex chickens around that time was followed by the welcoming of a new Sussex chicken variety – the Light breed of Sussex chicken. This bird helped in promoting the nation’s economy because of its large marketplace.
It was then that the Sussex Breed Club was formed. This was in 1903. In 1912, the light Sussex chicken breed gained entrance into the United States of America. American Poultry Association (APA) also recognized other Sussex chicken breeds in 1929.
These breeds were the Light, Speckled, and Red, varieties; however, the British classification of the Sussex Chickens was different from that of APA. The breed association for Sussex hens (Poultry Club of Great Britain) recognized eight colors for both standard-sized and bantam fowl. This includes light, buff, brown, coronation, white, red, speckled, and silver.
The buff variety first appeared in the 1920s, then the white, and the silver.
Uses of the Sussex Chicken Breed
The Sussex hen is a dual-purpose chicken. This means that it is valuable for meat and egg production.
During the Second World War, the Sussex along with the Rhode Island Red served as the two main meat breeds in the United Kingdom. Recently, it has been displaced by modern industrial hybrid lines. These table birds lay about 180–200 brown eggs each year and some strains may produce 250 eggs weighing about 60 g.
Characteristics of Sussex Chicken Breeds
1. The Body Skeleton of Sussex Chickens
The Sussex chicken breed has a long, broad, flat back with a straight breastbone which is also long. The shoulders are wide and rectangular. The tail is angled at 45 degrees from the body
2. Feathers of the Sussex Chicken Breeds
They have close-fitted soft feathers which are heavy and full, although the tail feathers are a bit scanty.
3. Comb Type and Wattle Color of the Sussex Chicken
They have red single combs and red wattles.
4. The Skin of Sussex Chickens
Regardless of the variety of Sussex chicken breeds, their skin is white. They also have white shanks and legs on four toes.
5. Eye and Earlobes Color of Sussex Breeds
The eyes and earlobes are red in all varieties, but for lighter specs, their eye color is orange.
6. Egg Colour of Sussex Chicken Breeds
Their eggs are brown and tinted.
7. Weight of the Sussex Chicken Breed
Approximately, the standard Sussex cock weighs 4.1 kg or 9 pounds; while the Bantam male has a maximum weight of 1.5 kg.
The standard Sussex hen is about 3.2 kg or 7 pounds. The Bantam female bird has a maximum weight of 1.1 kg.
The cockerel weighs 7½ pounds and a pullet is about 6 pounds. On an estimate, the Sussex chicken breed Weighs from 6 to 9 pounds
8. Habitat and Environment of Sussex Chicken Breed
Since they are friendly and confident birds, they work well in an environment that supports their productivity. An enabling habitat that allows for foraging specifically, a garden environment rather than a pen house
Lifespan Of Sussex Chickens
The average lifespan of the Sussex chicken breed is 8 years though they may live longer than that if managed properly. Sussex chickens grow very fast and are fat. The only downside to their growth rate is that they fail to mature early.
Varieties of The Sussex Chicken Breed
Of the eight color varieties of Sussex chickens recognized by the Poultry Club of Great Britain, the following are their characteristics:
Light Sussex
The light Sussex chicken breed has a white body, white neck, and a black tail. There is also black striping in the flight feathers, wing coverts, and neck hackles. The light is the most predominant of the variant and has similar characteristics which can be spotted in other varieties.
Buff Sussex
The buff chicken also has similar markings to the light variant, but with a greenish-black and golden-buff base.
Brown Sussex
The brown Sussex chicken breed is like the red but deeper. The feathers are arranged in a hybrid pattern.
Coronation Sussex
The coronation is like the light but the markings are lavender (light blue) in place of black. This bird was created for the coronation of Edward VIII which never occurred. It had the colors of the Union Flag – red, white, and blue colors
White Sussex
White is a pure white chicken with zero markings of its colors.
Red Sussex
The only difference between the red and the light is that the former has rich dark red as its ground color. They either have red or orange eyes. Its coloring is similar to the Rhode Island Red.
Speckled Sussex
The Speckled variety of Sussex chickens is the oldest variety of the breed. It has a very attractive rich dark mahogany color with a white tip on the feathers. This variant and the Rhode Island Red were formerly the principal meat bird.
After hybrid strains were developed and egg-laying commercialized around World War II; these birds became less important and invariably replaced. The modern Speckled Sussex is said to be “recovering” from extinction according to the Livestock Conservancy because of the increase in backyard chicken keeping.
Silver Sussex
Just like the light, which has sparse black lines, the silver in addition to this has grey thighs with silver penciling on its dark breast.
Sussex Breed Information
Specs of the Sussex Chicken
- Sussex Chicken family is robust, sturdy, healthy, yet broody. They are not known to be sufferers of common chicken diseases.
- The Sussex chicken breed is a low-maintenance bird. That is, they are easy to maintain and handle.
- The Sussex chickens are the perfect source of eggs and meat.
- The Sussex Hen is a very alert mother, they are pretty and also good foragers.
- They are non-noisy, non-aggressive Birds and as such make great pets.
- Sussex Chickens are good for exhibitions in poultry shows.
Disadvantages Of Having a Sussex Chicken Breed
- Sussex birds may become overweight quite easily and when this happens, they can’t defend themselves
- Because they are great foragers, the Sussex Chicken may go far away from your backyard in search of food.
Conclusion
Having discovered the varieties, egg-laying abilities, and history of the Sussex chicken breed, you must have known that this would be a big plus to your flock if you add them to your Poultry farming business.
You are sure to make great benefits both from starting an egg supply business and meat production with the most minimal risks.
