The long journey from the wild jungle fowl to the modern hybrid

This month, Paul Donovan investigates the origin of the humble hen as we know it.

- Paul Donovan

If current statistics are to be believed, the world population of chickens numbers over 33 billion. That ranks the domestic chicken as one of the most abundant species in the world. To put that into context, that is four times the human population (8 billion). Perhaps this is why we take them for granted. More poultry by-products are consumed than any other meat, and in many countries it forms the staple diet. But the questions we could be asking ourselves are, "where did the chicken originate from?", and "why has it become so popular?" Because they exist in our lives in so many ways, it is easy to think the chicken.

has been around in its present form since birds evolved and took to the skies. But animals do not just appear in the form we seem them today. As with humans they have undergone an evolutionary process to take on the characteristics which they display now. These are features such as size, plumage colour, behaviour, egg laying cycle, eggs colour, and vocalisation.

THE FIRST CHICKEN

So, modern chickens did not just 'appear'. At some point, two birds which almost looked like chickens (proto-chickens), must have mated to produce a bird with genetic mutation which carried the coding of both individuals. This combination of two different DNAS, 'mixing' together in a zygote produced the very first cell of the very first chicken. Over a period of time, mutations took place in that cell, which replicated themselves in every other cell in the body. Eventually the first 'true' chicken would be born.

While that theory holds true, and the domestic chicken Gallus domesticus was born, this does not mean it looked like it does today. So, who are the likely candidates to be the parents of our domestic bird. At the top of the list, is the Red Junglefowl Gallus gallus.