Page 43 - American Survival Guide - October 2017

BEST CHICKEN

BREEDS

Just as some people like dark meat and others like light
meat, and some like fried chicken while others prefer chicken
soup, consideration of the breed of chicken also needs to be
made. There are chickens that have been specifically bred
for certain conditions.
Ameraucana. Harsh winters won’t slow this snow bird
down. While it can be broody, it matures fairly quickly and also
‹ Left: People
waiting for produces a lot of eggs.
famine relief
in Bangalore, Brown Leghorn. This breed is good for hot climates and is an
1877 (From active forager. It is also a great egg-layer.
the Illustrated
London News, Buckeye. This breed can endure cold winters and still
1877. Photo: produce an adequate supply of eggs year round. The downside
Public Domain)
is that it is slow to mature ... so don’t plan that chicken dinner
for a while.
Chanticler. This is another hardy bird that can deal with the
cold. It is docile, produces a lot of eggs and is a good mother
bird—with early maturing of o spring.
Dominique. While this chicken breed won’t like the coldest
of winters, it won’t mind a white Christmas (and it is early-
maturing, so it would be ready for Christmas dinner).
Egyptian Fayoumi. It might not be ideal for today’s
Egyptian deserts, but it does like hot climates and is a good
egg-layer. More importantly, it is disease resistant and matures
early, so it can go from fi eld to frying pan in a season or two.
Marans. This variety of chicken won’t worry about water
falling from the sky. It is adaptable to a variety of conditions
and lays a good number of eggs during the year.

‹ Left: A
16th-century
engraving by
Jost Amman of
a German-style
brewery. Thanks
to the Little Ice
Age, there was a
shift from wine
production to
beer production
in Europe.
(Photo: Public
Domain)
Brian Fagan, world historian and author of The Little Ice Age: How
Climate Change Made History 1300-1850. “What makes everything PHOTO: JOE MABEL/CREATIVE COMMONS
much more complex today is the multi-million people cities on › Right: An
the coasts and in semi-arid lands that rely on imported food. The Egyptian Fayoumi
future looks bleak unless we take climate change and both water is a good egg-layer
that can adapt to
and food shortages seriously.” hot climates.

[ASGMAG.COM] AMERICAN SURVIVAL GUIDE 43

ASG-1710-CLIMATE.indd 43 7/17/17 12:36 AM