The domestic chicken is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl, native to Southeast Asia, with a round body covered in varied feathers (white, red, black, brown) and a prominent breast; it has a small head, short beak, and slender legs adapted for running and scratching the soil in search of food. It is the most numerous bird on Earth, with an estimated population of over 20 billion specimens, kept for meat and eggs, as well as pets or for breed competitions; it plays an essential role in agriculture and global food security
Habits
Chickens are diurnal and highly social animals, organizing themselves in a hierarchy established through pecking order, spending their days pecking for seeds, insects, and plant debris, sleeping at night on branches or in shelters; they rarely fly and only for short distances to climb or escape danger
Reproduction
Chickens reach sexual maturity at approximately 5-6 months and can produce one egg per day; the incubation period is 20-21 days, and a production breed hen can lay up to 300 eggs per year
Distribution
Initially domesticated in Southeast Asia, chickens are now spread across all continents in commercial farms and rural households, adapting to a variety of habitats, from agricultural plains to farms in temperate and tropical zones
