Wednesday, December 28, 2011

This Chicken Has Black Bones

Ferdinand the silkie rooster

Ferdie is a rescued rooster living at the sanctuary. He is a Silkie bantam.

Silkies have black skin. They have black bones, organs, and skin. It is called fribromelanosis. It's not a disease.

This is because of artificial selection and a novel mutation. Genetic researchers like studying this phenomenon because it is evolution sped up.

From Science Daily: Genetic study of black chickens shed light on mechanisms causing rapid evolution in domestic animals

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