Bielefelder Chickens, the Uber Chicken.

The Bielefelder is a relatively new breed of chicken, developed in the 1970s, in the area of Bielefeld, Germany. The Bielefelders have been described as the Uber chicken due to their German engineering. A number of breeds were used in developing the Bielefelder, including the Cuckoo Maran and the New Hampshire.

Bielefelders are colorful, attractive birds. Bielefelder chickens are a large, fast-maturing, dual-purpose breed with a calm temperament and excellent cold tolerance. They are autosexing.

Bielefelder hens are friendly, gentle birds, and the roosters are said to have excellent temperaments. They will go broody occasionally. They grow fast and prefer living in the open air. Autosexing means the birds have great homesteading potential because you can distinguish pullets from cockerels at hatch by the color and pattern of down on the chicks.

Bielefelder males have a distinct white spot on their heads and the darker stripes on the head and back are lighter and less defined than those on the females. Bielefelders are excellent layers for a dual-purpose breed, laying more than 200 large extra-large Brown eggs per year and they are good winter layers. It will take the hens a bit longer to come in to lay than other chickens, but it is worth the wait.

Bielefelders are gentle Giants with the roosters weighing from 11.5 pounds and the hens 8 to 10 pounds. They make an impressive table bird and truly live up to their dual-purpose designation. Bielefelders are independent and forage well for their own food if given free rein. They are ideal for pasture-based systems and thrive in the outdoors. They really are a homesteader’s chicken with their autosexing ability, high production of large brown eggs, and a robust meat carcass