Poule d'Alsace
Poule d'Alsace, often called the Alsacienne in French or Elsässer Huhn in German, is a regional domestic chicken from Alsace along the upper Rhine. It is a light to medium farm breed with tight feathering, an alert carriage, and a small rose-type comb that suits cold weather better than a large single comb. Black birds are especially associated with the breed, though several color varieties may be recognized depending on the standard. Historically it served as an active village fowl for eggs and a modest table bird.
In home or conservation flocks, the Alsacienne rewards space and active management more than confinement. It forages enthusiastically in orchards, gardens, and mixed small farms, but fencing may need to be higher than for heavier breeds. Hens are valued for white-shelled eggs and seasonal productivity rather than industrial output. Because the breed is rare outside its home region, breeding decisions should protect utility traits, comb shape, and regional type as carefully as plumage color.
Colors: Barred, Birchen, Black, Blue, Brown, Buff, Columbian, Crele, Cuckoo, Duckwing, Gold, Gold Laced, Laced, Lavender, Mille Fleur, Mottled, Partridge, Penciled, Porcelain, Red, Silver, Silver Laced, Spangled, Splash, Wheaten, White
