The Sicilian buttercup chicken comes from the Italian island of Sicily. It is a rather rare race, appreciated mainly for its beauty, its rich coloring and its magnificent golden plumage.
The name comes from the unusual cup-shaped scallop. This breed of chicken was first imported to the United States in 1835, then to Britain and Australia in the early 20th century.
The Sicilian buttercup chicken comes from the Sicilian breed native to Sicily. But the long separation from the original lodge has led to marked differences between them.
In 1918, this chicken breed was included in the American Poultry Association’s Standard of Excellence. The American Livestock Service has classified the breed as “endangered”. There is also a chicken version of the Sicilian buttercup bantam.
Characteristics of Sicilian Ranunculus Chicken
One of the main characteristics of the Sicilian Buttercup chicken is the difference in coloration between males and females. Male and female have very different plumage.
The females are a beautiful golden color with black spangles in parallel rows, producing an almost mottled appearance.
Males have rich dark orange feathers with a greenish-black tail. This chicken breed has a unique appearance with a cup-shaped comb (actually two separate combs).
The crest is a cup-shaped crown with a full circle of medium-sized, red, regular dots.
Both males and females have willow green legs. They have red beards and white earlobes. On average, Sicilian buttercup roosters weigh around 2.95 kg and hens around 2.50 kg.
Behaviour/Temperament
Sicilian buttercups are grown mainly for ornamental purposes. But they are also good for meat and egg production. Like other Mediterranean bird breeds, Sicilian buttercup hens are also very hardy and have good laying hens.
The hens lay a lot of medium-sized white or colored eggs. They are good for hot climates and do not tolerate extremely cold temperatures. They are good foragers and perfect for free range. They do not tolerate confinement.
They are particularly calm but very active. Chickens do not incubate. Sicilian buttercups are fickle and ripen quickly. But the cup-shaped comb takes time to fully develop. See the full breed profile below.
| Breed name | sicilian buttercup |
| another name | everything |
| Purpose of the breed | ornamental |
| Broad temperament | Fickle, active, restless, sometimes friendly |
| Breed size | big |
| sullen instinct | Rarely |
| comb | Buttercup |
| climatic tolerance | warm climate |
| egg color | White or tinted |
| Egg size | Little |
| Egg performance | Low to medium |
| feathered feet | Not |
| scarcity | Ordinary parts |
| Varieties | Buttercup cultivar with different colored males and females |
Good
- unique appearance
- Beautiful
- Unique comb for buttercups
- Males and females of different colors
- very active
- Robust
- good collectors
- Ideal for free range
- Sometimes very nice
They are bad
- inconstant
- Not good to conclude
- Small eggs and low egg production
- Can be noisy at times
Is Sicilian Buttercup Chicken Right For You?
Sicilian Buttercup Chicken is good if you…….
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- Want to raise beautiful hens with a unique look.
- Look for very active chickens.
- Look for a breed of chicken that is an excellent forager and ideal for an outdoor system.
- There is a pasture and ready to add chickens to it.
- They live in hot regions and want to have chickens that do well in hot climates.
