Content
The modern Livenskaya breed of chickens is a product of the work of specialist breeders. But this is a restored version of Russian chickens of national selection. The initial productive characteristics of the Livensk calico breed of chickens were very good for the beginning of the twentieth century. But with the advent of specialized crosses, Livenskaya quickly lost ground and practically disappeared. Only the work of enthusiasts made it possible to preserve this breed, but in a slightly modified form.
Story
At the very end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries, poultry processing regions began to appear in the Russian Empire, specializing in breeding chickens for meat and eggs. At that time, the largest eggs were obtained in the Yelets and Livensky districts of the Oryol province.
The egg products of these counties were especially appreciated in England. If you believe the magazine "Poultry Industry" in 1903, then 43 million 200 thousand eggs were taken from Lieven that year. The question arises, however, “how many chickens were in Livny and the surrounding area, if at that time the layers were given a maximum of 200 pieces. eggs per year. " Simple arithmetic shows that there should have been over 2 million hens. Even with good development of poultry farms in the county, the figure looks unrealistic. If we consider that 200 pcs. eggs a year then yielded the best egg breeds, then just fantastic. In the Yaroslavl province, the peasants fed only about 100 thousand chickens for meat. Most likely, a zero, or even two, was assigned to the above number of exported eggs.
But in any case, the eggs of the Livensky chickens were very large for those times in size (55-60 g), for which they were valued in Great Britain.
In the situation with the Livonian-Yelets eggs, an interesting phenomenon was observed, which could not fail to interest the Russian scientists of that time: large eggs were laid by hens only in this area. Because of this circumstance, scientists from the Russian Department of Agriculture have become interested in the question "which breed bears such large eggs". In 1913-1915, a mass census of all chickens raised by the peasants was carried out in this region. The discovered livestock was divided into five "races". They were divided not by productivity or appearance, but solely by the color of the plumage. The Livensky calico breed of chickens was not noted, but Yurlovskikh vociferous, distinguished by large eggs and large live weight. It was one of the few large-scale attempts to enumerate peasant farms and livestock.
Two years later, Russia had no time for agricultural economics. After the restoration of order, work on the study of local poultry in the central zone of Russia was continued. The work has been carried out since 1926 for 13 years. All the collected data concerned only the Yurlovski voices. Again, not a word was said about the Livenskys. During the Second World War, almost all of the poultry population was eaten in the occupied regions. In the Livensk environs, only a few pure chickens survived.
To clarify the state of private poultry farming in the liberated regions, the Department of Poultry of the TSKHA organized expeditions. Including in the Livensky district. I. Ya. According to the results of the first study, Shapovalov described the appearance of the chicken most characteristic of the Livensky district:
- weight 1.7-4.0 kg;
- the crest is leaf-shaped and pink-shaped (almost equally);
- the lobes are usually red;
- metatarsus yellow, unfeathered in 80% of chickens;
- the predominant color is black and yellow;
- eggs length 59 mm, width 44 mm;
- more than 60% of eggs have colored shells.
In fact, Shapovalov, with his description, "appointed" the surviving hens of the Livonian environs as a breed. In his opinion, Asian breeds participated in the formation of this livestock. But later, the version of the origin of the Liven population was changed. It was suggested that the appearance of the Livenskys was significantly influenced by the Yurlovskaya breed. That is, Yurlovskaya vociferous + local mongrel = Livenskaya breed of chickens. Such hybrids reached a live weight of 4 kg for laying hens and 5 kg for males. The egg mass was 60-102 g.
Due to the size of the eggs, the Liven population of poultry has become important for agriculture. Shapovalov attributed the difference in egg weight to the diversity and richness of vegetation in the study areas. The maximum egg weight was in areas with a rich food base.
But the obtained characteristics of the newly-born Livensky breed of chickens did not provide information on many indicators of productivity. Therefore, in 1945, a second study was carried out in the Nikolsky and Livensky districts. Were collected 500 heavy eggs from large chickens for subsequent incubation at the Department of TSKhA.
At that time, the Leggorns began to gain popularity and it was necessary to find out the characteristics of the reproduction and development of local chickens in comparison with the Italian breed.
In the post-war years, it was not necessary to sort out feed, and the chickens were fed with barley, oats and bran. But even on this meager diet, interesting data were obtained. The pullets weighed 2.1 kg, the males 3.2 kg. The variability of traits in the livestock was only 6%. Thus, chickens from the vicinity of the city of Livny could really be attributed to a breed created by folk selection. According to the productive characteristics, the chickens of the Liven breed belonged to the meat and egg type. They reached full development by the age of one, that is, they were late maturing. This state of affairs did not satisfy the authorities, who needed to increase the speed of agricultural production.
After Stalin's death, Khrushchev came to power, and the USSR set the global task of "catching up and overtaking America." And pragmatic Americans preferred to grow broiler and egg crosses, not chasing the appearance of chickens. Something had to be done with the lag.
In 1954, the same Shapovalov proposed to cross half the herd of Livensky chickens with roosters of the Kuchinsky anniversary breed instead of the originally planned New Hampshire. At that time Kuchin anniversary egg production was higher and the best indicators of body weight gain.
In 1954, backcrossing actually happened. Further, two groups of the Livensky herd were bred in themselves, fixing the result. The lower indicators of productivity were established:
- egg production more than 50 pcs.;
- live weight from 1.7 kg;
- egg weight at least 50 g.
According to these indicators, only 200 individuals were selected from the total herd of 800 heads. At the same time, it turned out that with competent breeding and selection, a purebred group shows results no worse than a bird crossed with Kuchin roosters.
As a result of the selection for increasing egg production by 1955, it was possible to increase the indicators from 60 pieces. in 1953 to 142 eggs in 1955. The live weight was also increased. Laying hens began to weigh 2.5 kg, roosters - 3.6 kg. Egg weight also increased to 61 g. But the number of chickens prone to incubation decreased to 35%.
By 1966, aboriginal chickens had ceased to meet the needs of poultry farms, and they began to be replaced by industrial crosses. Although local breeds are still used to breed new lines of crosses, by 1977 the Livensky chicken was considered extinct.
In 2009, chickens, corresponding to the description of the Livensky calico breed, suddenly appeared at the regional exhibition in Poltava. Photos of "old" chickens of the Livensk breed have not survived, so it is impossible to say for sure how the newly discovered birds correspond to the old standards.
In the years when industrial chickens were bred at poultry farms, the Livensky ones that remained with private owners were chaotically interbred with other breeds. Chance helped to revive Livenskaya.
The family of amateur poultry farmers did not set themselves such a goal. They collected different breeds of chickens in their farmstead. And we went to buy Poltava print. But the seller for some reason called the sold bird Livenskaya. Numerous checks have confirmed that this is really a miraculously preserved Livensky breed of chickens, which found its second home in Ukraine.
Description
Today's Livenskaya breed of chickens belongs to the meat and egg type, like its ancestors. Large, weighing up to 4.5 kg, the cocks of the Lieven calico breed look impressive even in the photo, the chickens are practically not inferior to them in size. Live weight of an adult laying hen is up to 3.5 kg.
The head is small, with a red face, crest, earrings and lobes. The crest is often leaf-shaped, but often rosy. The beak is yellow-brown or black-brown. The eyes are orange-red.
The neck is short, thick, set high. The torso is horizontal to the ground. Silhouette of a triangular rooster. The back and loin are wide. The chest is fleshy, wide, protruding forward. The tail is short and fluffy. The plaits are poorly developed. The belly is full, well developed in chickens.
Legs are of medium length. The hocks can be yellow or pink, sometimes grayish or green.
The color today is mainly variegated (calico), but also often comes across a bird of black, silver, yellow and golden colors.
Productivity
Chickens are late maturing and reach full weight by the year. The meat is tender. Gutted carcasses can weigh up to 3 kg.
Egg production up to 220 pcs. in year. The eggs are large. The pullets rarely lay eggs weighing less than 50 g. Subsequently, the weight of the eggs increases to 60-70 g.
This circumstance makes them related to the Yurlovskiye voices. Today, the eggshells of the eggs of the Livensk hens have various shades of brown. White eggs are almost never found.
Dignity
The Livenskys have soft, tasty meat and large eggs. The breed is distinguished by its large size and relatively high egg production, which decreases slightly even in winter.
The Lievens are unpretentious in keeping, like any aboriginal breed, and in the summer they can provide themselves with vitamin and animal feeding. According to poultry farmers, the Liven breed of chickens, even today, are often fed the old fashioned way: first with crushed grain, and then with wheat alone. The breed tolerates frosty winters well and is resistant to infectious diseases.
Doubts are caused by their incubation instinct. According to the description, the Livenskaya breed of chickens incubates well, but there are no photos of the quail with chickens. The statement about 200 pieces also comes into conflict. eggs per year and incubation of only 2 broods per season. Either the hen lays eggs or incubates about 20. eggs at a time.
But you can find a photo of the Livensky chickens in the incubator.
disadvantages
Judging by the reviews, the Liven calico breed of chickens requires additional costs for warming the premises at an early age. This is a long-fledged breed that needs high air temperature for a long time. Some poultry farmers believe that the breed is cannibalistic. Chickens can peck on laid eggs.
Character
Due to the fact that from the very beginning it was a breed group, and even now there is no confidence in the presence of the Livensky breed, and not just motley chickens, they say different things about the character. According to some, the chickens are very restless and shy, but the adult bird becomes calm. Others argue that there is no single model of behavior among chickens of the Liven breed. With a similar color of plumage, birds behave differently.
The same goes for roosters. Some can fight dogs and birds of prey, others are calm enough.But today, when breeding roosters with the first model of behavior, they are rejected, since they show aggression towards people.
Testimonials
Conclusion
The survival of a real Livensky breed somewhere thousands of kilometers from the "homeland" is hardly possible. Simply because the owners of private farmsteads in the villages had neither the physical nor the financial ability to keep the breed clean for almost 40 years. There was also a lack of education and understanding of how to properly conduct breeding work. Therefore, the "suddenly revived" Livensky breed of chickens is most likely a mixture of cheaper breeds. But the marketing move "the revival of a rare breed" allows you to sell hybrids much more expensive than purebred chickens of the same breeds.
