Leghorn chicken

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The Livornese is a breed of chicken, named after the Italian city of Leghorn/Livorno. Leghorns, and leghorn crossbreeds, are one of the most popular commercial breeds of chicken worldwide, and while the majority are white, a number of varieties also exist. In the American Standard of Perfection they are recognized in white, red, black tailed red, light brown, dark brown, black, buff, columbian, and silver, most have single combs but there are several color varieties that have rose combs also.In bantam they are also exchequer, a pied pattern.

Leghorns are excellent layers of white eggs (around 300 per year), but they can be noisy, flighty, and easily excited. Leghorns mature quickly, but are generally not considered to be large birds nor suitable for meat, they average from 3 lbs to 4 lbs. Due to their prolific egg-laying, they are preferred by laboratories for embryonic and avian biological research as well as being the number one breed used for large-scale commercial egg production in the United States.

See also: Foghorn Leghorn