BANTAM NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3205, 18 August 1915, Page 61

BANTAM NOTES.

By Black Red.

In bantams the black rosccombs seem to bo the most popular breed in New Zealand to-day. No other variety has improved so much during the past five or six years nor attained the same height of perfection. At the present day competition in rosccombs is very busy at all shows, and a bird to bo successful must be very near perfection or bis chance in the prize list will bo a very poor one. Black rosccombs are fairly hardy, but the chicks require careful attention during the first few weeks, especially so if kept on cold, damp ground. They are great layers, and not very apt to go broody. An ideal roseoomb cock should have his comb fitting close to head, broad in front, tapering to a long leader or spike at the back, the leader to bo fine and have an upward tendency towards the end; it should be well and evenly serrated, and not hollow in front or centre, but level throughout; face cherry red, smooth, and free from white (which is -often found under the eyes); head short and broad; beak dark and slightly curved; eyes dark and full; ear lobes white, round, of smooth texture, and the ..thicker tho better, about the size of a shilling. Birds with larger lobes usually go white in face. Wattles should be round and smooth; neck short and thick; hackle full and covering the shoulders well; back short and broad ; wings fairly large, but not too long; tad large; primary feathers long and broad, sickle feathers long and as broad as possible; the ■end of sickle should be almost as broad as at the commencement, and not running to a point. The sickles should be gracefully curved until they nearly touch the ground. The side hangers, which cover the tail, should correspond with the sickles- —as broad as possible, and the more the better. Tne breast should be broad and full, and carried forward, with the head thrown back; legs short and fine, black in colour, not slaty-blue or pale, although adult birds will be found to have paler coloured legs than cockerels, with either black or white toenails—white preferred; carriage jaunty and lively, yet graceful in movements; weight 14oz to l8oz; colour lustrous greenish black —the brighter tho better. In the 'hen the comb, head, face, eyes and lobes should bo tho same as described in tho cock; ear lobes about the size of a sixpence, smooth, white, and of firm texture; wattles fine, round, bright and healthy red in colour; back as short as possible; tail carried rather gay; wings carried slightly below tho body, not too long; breast full and carried forward same as cock; legs short and fine and black in colour; carriage jaunty yet graceful. I would advise those who contemplate taking up this variety of bantam to go in for some reliable strain, and stick to it. Don’t buy from first one and then another,and hope for success. If you dto you will regret it, for the only sure road success in rosecomb breeding is by keeping the one strain pure. Of course, it would not do to breed year after year from your own, unless you retain a certain number of stock birds annually for this purpose, which is done by tho most successful breeders in tho Old Land. Let the health of your chickens guide you as to tho necessity of fresh blood in your stock, and" then it is advisable to use only those with a dash of your own strain in them, rather than a direct cross, as by using quite a new strain you Will in all probability get your birds much too large. To breed exhibition black rosecomb cocks I would select a cock with a long comb, nicely worked throughout, and tapering off to a long leader; lobe of good size, round and of good texture; body small, and short in back. To this bird I would mate three or -four hens or pullets (hens preferred), all possessino- good combs with long leaders. This is Important. The lobes should be thick and smooth and of nice size; face free from white, and dark in eye and in legs. Bodv as short as possible, with plenty of tail, but see that the tail feathers are broad, and if tho top feathers on each side of the tail are curved all the better. From this pen you should get a large percentage of first-class exhibition cockerels. Although it is quite possible to breed both good cockerels and pullets from one pen, still it is advisable, whore practicable, to use separate pens; for to breed from one pen you must have a. thorough knowledge of how each individual bird is bred, _ and whether of a cockeral strain or of a juliet strain. In breeding pullets the male bird should bo good in lobe, as thick and as smooth as possible, but must be free from white in face, both these requirements being of the greatest importance. He must be short and cobby and by no means long in back. The hens to mate witb_ him should approach as near as possible to the ideal hen already described. The produce from each pen should be marked and kept separate for future breeding. From this pullet pen, should you by chance breed a cockerel good in head points and shape, yet bad' in colour, say rod or bronze in saddle or back, don’t wring his neck as a “ waster.” If you do so you are perhaps killing the bird which might give you your best results, for it is these bronzcd-backcd, red-hackled ones which breed the richest coloured birds.