Long-crowing chicken breeds are characterised by the unusually long-drawn-out

crow A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifica ...

of the cocks, which may in some cases last for up to 60 seconds. The oldest references to long-crowing cocks are from China. Long-crowing breeds are found in the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

, in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

, in the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

and in

western Germany The old states of Germany (german: die alten Länder) is a jargon referring to the ten of the sixteen states of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) that were part of West Germany and that unified with the eastern German Democratic Republic' ...

History

The earliest reference to long-crowing cocks is in the writings of Li Ji, dating from the reign of

Emperor Xuan of Han Emperor Xuan of Han (Liu Xun 劉詢, né Liu Bingyi 劉病已; born 91 BC – 10 January 48 BC) was the tenth emperor of the Chinese Han dynasty, reigning from 74 to 48 BC, and was one of the only four Western Han emperors to receive a temple na ...

(75–49 BC). In Japan the first references are from the early eighth century, in the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki chronicles. The Bergische Kräher breed of Germany was imported from the

in Mediaeval times. In Russia the Jurlower or

Yurlov Crower The Yurlov Crower is an old Russian list of chicken breeds, breed of chicken primarily selected and used for long crowing cock contests in Russia. Breed names * Russian: юрловская голосистая * English: Yurlovo Crower, Yurlov ...

was bred in the nineteenth century.

Characteristics

Chicken breeds which to a greater or lesser extent display long-crowing behaviour include the

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, Bergische Kräher, Jurlower and Kosova Long Crower and breeds of eastern Europe, the Denizli of Turkey, and the Koeyoshi, Kurokashiwa,

Tomaru The Tōmaru () is a Japanese breed of long-crowing chicken. The crow may be sustained for some 25 seconds. It is one of four Japanese long-crowing breeds, the others being the Koeyoshi, the Kurokashiwa and the Tōtenkō. History The Tōmar ...

and Tôtenko breeds of Japan. In general, long-crowing breeds are tall, with long legs and neck.

Cock crowing contests

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

and Japan, there is an old tradition of cock crowing contests with local longcrowers. The length of a crow is measured, but also the number of crowing calls, the tone and melody can be judged. More recently, longcrower contests with nonlocal breeds are being organised in Germany and

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List of Longcrower breeds

American Long Crower The American Long Crower is an American breed of chicken developed in the 2000s. It was named for its exceptional crow that regularly lasts more than 10 seconds. It originated as a composite of the Turkish Denizli chicken The Denizli is a ...

* Achal Tekkinski *

Ayam Ketawa Ayam Ketawa, or "laughing chicken", is a breed of chicken originating from the area of Sidenreng Rappang in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is one of several breeds of long-crowing chicken prized for the clarity and unusual length of their crows. ...

("Laughing Chicken", also named "Ayam gaga") *

Ayam Pelung Ayam Pelung or Pelung Chicken (Pelung long crower) is a poultry breed from Cianjur, Indonesia. The males (roosters) are considered to be "singing chickens", with contests being frequent in the Pelung area for the most melodious crowing. A full g ...

Bekisar The Bekisar, or Ayam Bekisar, is the first generation hybrid offspring of the green junglefowl (''Gallus varius'') and domesticated red junglefowl from Java (''Gallus gallus bankiva''). The roosters have a glossy blackish green plumage and a ...

* Bergische Crower and Bergische Bantam Crower * Brazilian Crower (Galo musico) * Bosnian Crower (Berat Crower) * Changkuo Crower * Denizli Crower (Denizli horozu) *

(Jurlovskie golosistie) * Kokok Balenggek (Ayam Kokok Balenggek) * Komotini Crower *

Kosovo Longcrower The Kosovo Longcrower or Kosovo Long Crowing Rooster is a breed of chicken originating in Kosovo. It developed as a landrace in the area of the Drenica in Kosovo, and thus in the Albanian language it is commonly called ''Rooster of Drenica''. Or ...

* Palama Crower * Shôkoku * Tômaru * Tôtenkô * Koeyoshi * Kurokashiwa

References

{{Long-crowing chickens Chickens Poultry breeding