Summary ²

The chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird. Humans keep chickens primarily as a source of food, consuming both their meat and their eggs.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Subramanya C K, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Red_jungle_fowl.png
2. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallus_gallus_domesticus

More Info

• iNaturalist NZ taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• VertNet
• Xeno-canto

iNaturalist NZ Map