Styrian hen - Štajerka

I decide to write some words of Styrian hen - Štajerka.

The Styrian hen - Stajerka in Slovene, Altsteirer Huhn in German - is the native breed of hen in Slovene and Austrian Styria. It originates in the region between the rivers Mura and Sava in the Slovene part of Styria and in the southern part of Austrian Styria. In the past four varieties of color appeared: light brown, white, barred and partridge-colored. The last one is the most spread and preserved.

Description

Hens of this breed are early maturing, lively, solid and are quite good layers. Their meat is of good quality, the skin is white and eggs are of medium size. The chest length, width and depth ratio is 8:5:3. The chest line is well round off while the crammed belly stresses its strong figure. Feathers on the neck and on the tail are rich; the comb is straight. The back slightly inclines towards the end of the body and it seems wide if looked from the upside down.

Origin and development

The Styrian hen is a native breed, although it may not originate there. Its characteristics suggest common ancestry with other Mediterranean breeds.
The Styrian hen was first mentioned in the 13th century. The breeders became interested in it in the second half of the 19th century when they started to breed it systematically. However, it could hardly compete with modern laying, meat, and dual purpose breeds. It survived mainly due to enthusiasts who were breeding it for domestic use. The hen was first described in 1894 by the first association of breeders in Graz. The special characteristics of the Slovene part of the development of the native Styrian hen were capons that represented an ethnographic background. Capons were castrated and fattened cocks of this breed and have been considered as a culinary speciality for centuries.