The Japanese Bantam

A "True-ly" Regal Bird

By Lowell Sherman
District 14
American Bantam Association

        The Japanese Bantam is one of the true bantam breeds of chickens and does not have a counterpart in the large standard-sized fowl. It is a breed that is originally from southeast Asia and was introduced to Japan in the early 1600s.

         The Japanese bantam is one of the most decorative of the chicken kingdom. The birds are small - less than two pounds each. In fact, the pullet's standard weight is only 1 pound, 4 ounces. The male is particularly attractive with its very large well-spread tail, which is carried very erect and sufficiently forward, and perpendicular to the point where the tail nearly touches the head.

         The legs of this breed are very short - the shortest of all bantam breeds and are barely visible under the leg and body feathers.

There are many varieties of Japanese bantams recognized by the American Bantam Association. Each variety carries different color patterns. The most often seen variety is the Black Tailed White Japanese bantam. This attractive variety is entirely white except for its tail, which is black with the sickle feathers and lesser sickle feathers laced with white feathers. The primary wing feathers are also black with the secondaries having black in the upper web of the feather.

Another often seen variety includes the Black Tailed Buff, which has a color pattern similar to the Black Tailed White, but the buff color replaces the white color. Several varieties of solid colored Japanese are the White, the Black, and the Blue.

         The Japanese Bantam is a very attractive breed but it does have problems with its confirmation and breeding. Often, the males have rye tails (ones which do not stand perpendicular and fall from side-to-side) and therefore become a disqualification in the show room. Too, the hatching of live chicks is a problem.

         Information garnered from the American Bantam Standard indicates that in a normal mating of two short-legged birds, only 25% of the offspring will have short legs; 50% will have long legs; 25% will have died in their shells. If one mates a long-legged bird with a short-legged bird, 50% will be short-legged; 50% will be long-legged. For poultry show purposes, it is essential that birds shown be short-legged.

In spite of their short legs, Japanese bantams perform very well as showmanship birds for youth participating in such programs. Overall, the Japanese Bantam is a very satisfactory breed and there is no chicken as attractive in the barnyard as this breed.

          For more information about the American Bantam Association, visit www.bantamclub.com; P.O. Box 127 Augusta, NJ 07822; (973) 383-8633.

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