chickens
by chloe ettinger
bio 630 animal physiology | fall 2021
Figure 1. Cute Baby Chicken Wallpapers poster. Nazwan Adimarup. Cute Baby Chicken Wallpapers App (May 16, 2017). Retrieved on September 10, 2021 from https://apkpure.com/cute-baby-chicken-wallpapers/com.andromo.dev266299.app619083
Fun Facts: The scientific name of the chicken is Gallus gallus domesticus. The average lifespan of the chicken is 5 - 10 years. The average incubation period of a chicken in 21 days.
introduction
Most people only see chickens as a source of food, and they are so much more than that! I chose to focus my term project on chickens, because they are often considered to be an inferior and unintelligent species, and I disagree with that. I think chickens are valuable and underappreciated by society, especially since chickens are so prevalent in our society as a major source of food.
global chicken population
Figure 2. Number of chickens worldwide from 1990 to 2019 (in million animals). M Shahbandeh, February 5, 2021. Statista. Retrieved on September 18, 2021 from https://www.statista.com/statistics/263962/number-of-chickens-worldwide-since-1990/
For the past 30 years, the global population of chickens has been increasing. In 2019 it was reported that there were 25 billion chickens living on Earth, which is approximately 3 times the number of humans (Shahbandeh, 2019)! As more and more chickens are being farmed to meet the demands of food supply, it can become easy to forget that these birds are living, breathing, and beautiful animals.
My personal goal with this project is to thoroughly research and share information about chickens, so that a deeper appreciation for these semi-flightless birds could be generated.
A fun fact about chickens is that they make great companions! Pictured below are my grandparents in their backyard chicken coop. Having pet chickens brings my grandparents lots of joy!
Figure 3. My Grandfather and Matilda. L Ettinger, September 6, 2019. Retrieved on September 18, 2021 from iPhone Photos.
Figure 4. My Grandmother and Lucinda. L Ettinger, September 6, 2019. Retrieved on September 18, 2021 from iPhone Photos.
