Welsummer
Chickens
We decided
to raise Welsummers based on a
desire to have a mellow dual purpose
dark brown egg layer.
Welsummer
This Dutch breed, called the Welsumer
in its native land, takes its
name from the small village of
Welsum in The Netherlands. Developed
just after the turn of the twentieth
century, it was first shown in
1921. Its main characteristic
is the large dark brown egg, described
in an article in Fancy Fowl as
"a rich  deep
flower-pot red brown, almost glowing
. . ." Although considered
a light, soft feathered, nonsitting
breed, the hens frequently do
go broody. Welsummers are good
foragers on free range. They were
developed there from breeds such
as Partridge Wyandotte, Partridge
Cochin, Partridge Leghorn, and
then later, Barnevelder and RIR.
They are highly sought after as
a production bird, laying a good
amount of beautiful dark red/brown
eggs.
Another good quality about Welsummers
would be that they can be fairly
accurately sexed by the coloring
of the stripe on their heads.
Darker stripes are females.
Left:
Female chick
Right:
Male chick
Reference
The Feather Site. 2006. www.feathersite.com
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