Japanese long-tailed fowl
- Japanese: 尾長鶏・尾長鳥 (onagadori / chôbikei / nagaodori)[1]
The onagadori (lit. long-tailed fowl) was a particular type of chicken bred in Tosa province beginning in the 1760s-1770s. Its exceptionally long tails were used to decorate yari (spears) and other accoutrements for the Tosa han sankin kôtai processions, adding to the distinctiveness of the Tosa processions. Though the sankin kôtai system had a myriad of profound effects on early modern Japanese culture, historian Constantine Vaporis cites the onagadori as perhaps the sole example of the direct impact of the system upon animal husbandry.[2]
The male (rooster) of the breed continues to grow its tail feathers, and certain other feathers, without shedding them during molting; the tail feathers can grow to be more than eight meters long. The rooster's body is primarily black, with white and pale purple feathers in the tail and elsewhere. Some roosters also have red-purple feathers; the cockscomb (crown) is a standard form, and its legs are white or yellow, with grey in parts. The female (hen) of the breed does not differ from more standard breeds of domestic chicken, and is chiefly a light brown color, with flecks of black.
References
- "Onagadori." Sekai daihyakka jiten 世界大百科事典. Hitachi Solutions, 2012.
