I have been having a good delve into my family ancestry just lately and it looks like Blodwyn has been doing the same! I have blogged previously about my old girls Blodwyn and Bethan and their similarity to dinosaurs and now even my little ex battery hens are showing signs of their ancestry too.
It's amazing how different an individual breed can be. Blodywn and Bethan, the two old girls are huge hens, they are not fast but they are very feisty. They stalk around the garden in a very relaxed manner but seem to have no fear of anything, even my rumbling old petrol mower doesn't scare them and the neighbour's cats appear to be terrified of them. They always give them a very wide berth if passing them in the garden. I do wonder if they are giving off some sort of signal to say ' I was once a Tyranosaurus Rex, don't mess with me!'
My latest arrivals, Faith, Hope and Charity, the little ex battery hens are very different. They are small and still have very few feathers. They are fast and agile and take every opportunity to use their small frame to chase prey. They really remind me of the little 'Turky sized' Compsognathus, one of the smaller dinosaurs that were mini bipedal carnivores. These tiny hens will chase even the most harmless butterfly to the death and any slugs and worms in the garden are history once they dig them out with their sharp claws and powerful beaks.
There has been a lot of research around this subject and I am convinced that our feathered friends are almost definitely a link back to their pre-historic relatives. I shall always have to be on my guard when I am inside or out of the chicken coop!
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