Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans

Day Old French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans Baby Chicks

Hatching February through August

We pride ourselves in carrying a large assortment of various colors of Marans Chickens, and we are so happy to offer these beautiful and classic French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans.

French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans Chickens are heritage dual-purpose chickens. They are perfect for all types of farms and homesteads. They lay dark chocolate-brown eggs and can also be very successfully raised for meat. They are a breed that gets along very well with one another and other poultry and animals. This breed truly is a perfect example of sustainable poultry. And as their name suggests, French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans Chickens have feathering up the outside of their legs. Note that some individuals will not have feathered legs, although they will carry the genetics for it. 

Production: French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans Hens lay over 175 eggs per year. When the egg-laying season commences, eggs are at their darkest. As the season progresses the dark coloring fades or lightens off. Individual birds lay different levels of dark brown so you can get a very diverse-looking egg carton from a single flock of French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans. Roosters can be efficiently grown out as meat birds and make lovely table birds. They have light white skin and are darker than usual meat. French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans Chickens are hardy and smart birds. They forage well and do well on pasture. Hens can go broody. Chicks start to display color variations within a short time of hatching so males and females can be distinguished from quite an early age. 

Temperament: French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans Chickens take well to almost all farm settings and types, including backyard flocks. They make great pet chickens as they are friendly, confident, and personable. Roosters are smart and calm and are usually not overly aggressive. 

History: The Marans Chicken breed originated in the 1800s and were named after the cold and wet town of Marans on the Western coast of France. The breed developed out of haphazard breedings between English Game Birds from ships at dock and hardy wild swamp fowl. The offspring of this mixture were rugged and vigorous chickens that thrived under extreme conditions. These birds were domesticated and carefully bred to create the Marans breed. Although the breed has gone through fluctuations in popularity throughout the years, it has recently been trending due to the very dark brown coloring of the eggs. 
Cuckoo Marans Chickens were recognized only as recently as 2011 by the APA.

APA Class: Continental 

Color Description: French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans Chickens are very attractive birds. The cuckoo pattern is very much like a barred pattern like on a Barred Rock. However, the barring or the delineation between the black and white stripes is smudged in the Cuckoo pattern. It looks like water was added, so the effect is smokey and blurred. Hens are much darker - more charcoal - overall than the roosters. Roosters are striking and chivalrous, with an upright and tall stance. They have bright red combs and large wattles. French Feather Legged Cuckoo Marans roosters are much lighter with a lot higher percentage of white feathers than the females. This contrast in coloring makes a stunning-looking flock.

Conservation Status: Not listed, recently imported.

Weight: Cockerel 7 lbs, Pullet 5.5 lbs