Name That Bird! Part 1

What's in a name?  Because I don't have children I missed out naming someone.  This is something I really wanted to do.  So naturally, when we got chickens I took great pleasure in selecting a name for each girl that would suit.  Some names came to me out of the blue, others are based on a character trait.  And if you don't think chickens have character, spend some time with them.  They will set you straight.

Each name seems to suit.  And I have finally convinced Mr. Practical to start calling the girls by their names instead of calling them "all those chickens".

So, without further ado, here's the first installment of Name That Bird!

Molly

Molly is a beautiful Silver-Laced Wyandotte and the first chicken we named.  She has a cocked tail and a teetering gait.  She lays beautiful medium-brown eggs that are rounded on both ends.  Because of her cocked tail we thought we should name her after a cocktail.  But since we don't drink we could only think of a different kind of cocktail to name her after.  Can you guess the connection?

Sweet Pea

She's our biggest girl but lays small greenish-blue eggs.  She is an Easter Egger, which is a cross between the blue-egg laying Ameraucana and any other breed. We think she may be part Orpington because of her considerable size.  She is also very sweet, as the picture indicates (she is standing on my lap).  No one messes with her.

Nellie

Meet Nellie, short for Nervous Nellie.  She's a Welsummer.  She is often the first to give the alarm call, warranted or not.  She lays solid dark brown eggs.  She's shyer than most of the biddies, unless there's a bug to be had.  If you're a bug in the garden, watch out.  She's gonna get ya.

Delysia

She is just such a showy, pretty thing, Miss Delysia.  One of my favourite movies, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, is such rollicking good fun. This Silver-Laced Wyandotte reminds me of the lovely, showy character Delysia from the film.  She lays the palest thin-shelled brown eggs.  I wonder if her pale eggs have any connection to her colouring, paler than all the other Wyandottes.

Jo

Also known as Beardless Jo, or Josephine.  This lovely, demure Easter Egger lays greenish-blue eggs that seem impossibly large coming from her tiny frame.  She is low on the pecking order and has lost her beard feathers to other girls.  I can hardly wait till she molts in the fall so she can have her full beard back.

Cora

Also known as Cora the Crow.  She really likes shiny things.  When I open the nest boxes to check for eggs she pecks at the metal latches.  When I squat down she pecks at the snaps on my cargo pants.  She likes pecking shiny things almost as much as she likes hunting insects.  This Welsummer lays enormous rich-brown eggs, almost the same colour as her feathers. 

Well, that's the first installment of Name That Bird.  I'll introduce the rest of the girls later.  Now I've got to head out to the coop and see what those characters are up to. Silly chickens!