The
History of the Araucana Poultry Club
The
British Araucana Poultry Club was founded more than 30 years ago.
The
Araucana is classified as Light, Soft Feather and can be
Large, Bantam or
Rumpless- which means no tail, no "Parsons
Nose" and with ear tufts of feathers.
The egg colour is
blue or green. It originated from Chile, Pockets of Araucana
can
still be seen in the Amazon Basin and in isolated areas in
the high fincas of the
Andes Range. The usual colours are
Lavender, Blue, Black/Red, Silver Duckwing,
Golden Duckwing,
Blue/Red, Pyle, Crele, Spangled, Cuckoo, Black and White.
Also
some non-standard colours. It is a prolific layer of
good-sized eggs and a very hardy
bird. When the Spaniards
arrived in South America, bringing with them their poultry,
they
found that the indigenous Indians had their own breeds which soon
crossed
with the imported stock. However in the High Andes
there were many areas where
the terrain made conquest
impossible and the Arauca Indians of Northern Chile were
never
conquered so their poultry remained pure and led to the name
Araucana. The
Araucana breed standard in Britain was envisaged
by George Malcolm who created
the true breeding lavender, among
other colours, in Scotland in the 1930s. The eggs
are strong in
shell and unique in that the colour permeates throughout the
shell. Blue
and green eggs have been reported from South
America from the mid-sixteenth
century onwards.
Membership
of the very popular Araucana Club costs £8 per year. For
this you will receive
newsletters, show entry cards, a
comprehensive members/stock/stock for sale-or-swap directory,
discounts to events and a club Yearbook. Additionally, members
birds will automatically be protected under the DEFRA rare poultry
breeds classification in case of a local influenza outbreak. New
members also get an extensive welcome pack. We presently have
nearly 1000 paid up Members around the world. The Club offers
Rosettes, Special Rosettes and Special Cards at most major shows.
We hold our annual Club Show and our A.G.M. at the spectacular
National Poultry Show at Stoneleigh (nr Coventry) in late Autumn
each year where our cups and trophies are awarded. Thousands of
birds are shown at this event, where people visit from around the
world.
We are constantly seeking new members and would
welcome your interest. If you
are already a member please
introduce our club to a friend.