What kind of chicken is the Yugan black-boned chicken? An introduction to its breed characteristics

The Yugan black-boned chicken is named after its place of origin, Yugan County in Jiangxi Province, and is a local breed used both as medicine and as meat. The Yugan black-boned chicken has a long history of rearing; according to textual research, as early as the Qin Dynasty, Wu Rui, the magistrate of Panyang (present-day Poyang), kept black-boned chickens at the foot of Wucai Mountain in Dengdun Township, Yugan County. Its main characteristics are: the whole body is black, with feathers, skin, meat, bones and internal organs all black, and it is especially noted for its medicinal value. According to blood group factor testing by the Institute of Genetics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, it differs in type from the Taihe chicken and other black-boned chickens, has outstanding characteristics, and is a unique fine black-boned chicken breed. This chicken has now been bred and purified by the Jiangxi Provincial Institute of Animal Husbandry. 1. Appearance characteristics The Yugan black-boned chicken is named for its all-black body. It has black, platelike feathers, and the beak, comb, skin, meat, bones, internal organs and toes are all black. The hen has a single comb, a delicate head, bright eyes and tight feathers; the rooster is brightly colored, sturdy and handsome, with high-arched, glossy black tail feathers, well-developed leg muscles, a proudly raised head, a single comb usually with 6 to 7 comb points, deep and thin wattles, and a diamond-shaped body. 2. Biological characteristics The Yugan black-boned chicken is small in size; adult weight is about 1500 g for roosters and about 1100 g for hens. It moves agilely, is good at flying, has a strong ability to forage, adapts widely, has strong disease resistance, and consumes little feed. Roosters generally begin crowing at 60 to 80 days; the average age at first laying for hens is about 180 days. Hens have a fairly strong brooding instinct. Annual egg production is about 150 eggs, egg weight is about 50 g, the eggshell is pink, and the incubation period is 21 days. 3. Economic value According to the Compendium of Materia Medica: "Black-boned chickens include those with white feathers and black bones, black feathers and black bones, spotted feathers and black bones, and white skin and black bones; those with completely black bones and flesh are better for medicinal use." The Yugan black-boned chicken is all black and is a rare medicinal poultry with important tonic functions, and it can also treat many diseases. According to surveys, many hereditary traditional Chinese medicine practitioners today believe that it has remarkable effects in treating cervicitis, edema, hepatitis, duodenal ulcer, arthritis, leukorrhea, metrorrhagia, osteomyelitis, cerebral thrombosis, postpartum weakness and other conditions. The Yugan black-boned chicken has a small body and fine bones, delicious meat, thin skin and tender flesh, and is rich in nutrients, with high protein content, a complete range of amino acids, and is also rich in vitamins and trace elements. Its cholesterol content is especially low, making it the best nutritional tonic for middle-aged and elderly people, pregnant and postpartum women, and those weakened by long illness, especially those with cardiovascular disease.