Looking for the perfect black and white chickens to add to your flock? Ornamental chickens with contrasting colors are rare, making them more memorable and eye-catching.
They vary in patterns. Some are mottled, others have lace-like patterns, while others boast a Columbian-inspired plumage.
But of all the black chicken breeds, which stands out and makes a perfect addition to your flock?
In this article, we’ll uncover 17 different white and black chicken breeds and their distinguishing characteristics.
In particular, you’ll discover:
- Whimsical black and white chickens that look straight out of a comic book
- Elegant white chickens adorned with black necklaces caused by the black restrictor effect
- And spangled black and white chicken breeds with cookies and cream-like plumage
So get your heart ready as we uncover these beauties!
Top 17 Gorgeous Black and White Chickens
Throughout the centuries, chicken growers kept chickens not just for egg and meat production but also for ornamental purposes. And these striking black and white chickens are the products of selective breeding.
We’ll kick off our list with one of the most eye-magnetizing white and black chickens, the Silver Wyandotte.
1. Black Laced Silver Wyandotte
Origin: | New York State |
Primary Use: | Meat and egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 8.5 pounds or 3.8 kg |
Hen: 6.5 pounds or 2.9 kg | |
Bantam variety: Yes or No | Yes |
Egg color and size: | Brown |
Black Laced Silver Wyandotte is one of the beautiful color variances of the Wyandotte chicken breed.
This chicken has silver and white feathers paired with black linings around. It looks straight out of a drawing book, and its beauty can undoubtedly hook you!
The Wyandotte has a calm and friendly personality, so they know how to get along well, even with kids.
Wyandottes don’t want to start a fight between their flockmates, but they can defend their property and themselves.
This breed can be your great choice because they can do well in meat and egg production. Why?
First, like other Wyandotte breeds, a mature cock Black Laced Silver can weigh up to 8.5 pounds, while the hen is 6.5 pounds.
And these large white and black chickens can lay many large eggs that reach 200 or more annually.
They also don’t complain if you put them in confinement or an open yard seeing they get all their needs to survive and reproduce.
You surely won’t regret raising this gorgeous black and white chicken.
2. Silver Laced Polish
Origin: | Netherlands/Europe (Unclear) |
Primary Use: | Ornamental and Egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 6 pounds |
Hen: 4.5 pounds | |
Has Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Small to medium white eggs |
Silver Laced was a variation of a Polish chicken breed. This bantam-size chicken has similar feather patterns to the Black Laced Silver Wyandotte.
They have white to silver coats with black linings on the edge of each feather.
The difference between them is that Silver Laced Polish is small and has a unique crest feather and is smaller in size.
A mature Silver-laced Polish black and white bantam hen can only weigh 4.5 pounds, while cocks are 6 pounds.
The color of its long crest is also a combination of black and white.
Their name Polish doesn’t mean they’re from Poland. Many people believe they originate in the Netherlands or other parts of Europe.
But their origin remains unknown because there’s no exact information on where they are being developed.
They’re lacking in the meat and egg production department. However, they can still raise 120 small to medium eggs and good ornamental animals.
They also have a genuinely friendly personality and never get broody.
3. Light Sussex
Origin: | United Kingdom |
Primary Use: | Meat, Egg, and ornamental breed |
Weight: | Cock: 9 pounds |
Hen: 7 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Large cream to brown eggs |
The Light Sussex chicken has first developed in England in the 1900s. It’s a stunning breed that can be a dual or triple purpose.
They have bold bodies weighing 7 to 9 pounds, making them popular in meat and egg production in Canada and the United Kingdom.
Their stunning plumage is colored with white coats with dark shades on their neck and tail.
These big black and white chickens can produce high-quality meat and about 250 eggs every year.
They are also not hard to raise because they’re alert, calm, curious, and good foragers.
Light Sussex hens are good mothers because they like incubating their eggs to produce offspring. So, they perfectly fit if you want to reproduce more chickens.
4. Thüringian Chicken
Origin: | Germany |
Primary Use: | Ornamental and historical use in meat and egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 4.5 to 5.5 pounds |
Hen: 3.5 to 4.5 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | White eggs |
Thuringians chickens’ roots can be traced back to the Thuringian Forest in 19th-century Germany.
Although they were created for two purposes, they are now primarily seen at poultry shows but are relatively uncommon.
They wear muffs, have a tiny comb, and have a distinguishable beard; their cute, chubby-cheeked appearance makes them withstand cold climates.
They are bold, curious, and prefer to roam freely rather than be kept inside a coop.
They’re small because they’re among the bantam black and white chicken breeds. A mature cock can only grow to 5.5 pounds, while hens are 4.5. And about 160 eggs are laid annually by hens.
They do not become broody frequently. But if they do, the mothers become highly aggressive and protect their eggs despite their size.
They make good pets because they are amiable and tame. Each color variation, like this black and white one, has a unique personality.
So they can still be a great addition to your flocks if they’re not combined with large breeds.
5. Dorking Chicken
Origin: | England |
Primary Use: | Meat and egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 8 pounds |
Hen: 4.5 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Medium to large tinted eggs |
The Roman conquest of Britain is thought to have given rise to the Dorking breed’s ancient ancestry.
The highly delicious chicken meat has been in high demand since Roman times.
This double-purpose breed adapts well to a free-ranging environment and also has good laying qualities. They are docile, friendly fowl, and hens make excellent mothers.
Dorking roosters are big, have deep chests, and are black and white with silver lace.
Instead of the traditional male pattern of black and white, hens have a lighter, finer coloring and a brown-and-white chest and belly.
Hens will lay a good number of eggs, more than some of your good-laying hens.
They are also recognized for maintaining their performance throughout the winter to prevent slowing down like some breeds.
The Dorking’s eggs are typically medium to big white or creamy and are little colored. So, they can be an excellent addition to your homestead.
6. Silver Spangled Hamburg
Origin: | Holland/Turkey (Unclear) |
Primary Use: | Ornamental and eggs |
Weight: | Cock: 5 pounds |
Hen: 4 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Small to medium white eggs |
One of the most watchful and anxious breeds of birds is this Silver Spangled Hamburg chicken.
Their white feathers with black streaks and spots placed randomly all over their plumage are reminiscent of cookies and cream but on a chicken feather.
They might not be reasonable table fares because they have dark bones and are small. A mature cocks can only weigh 5 pounds, while hens are 4 pounds.
However, Silver Spangled Hamburg hens are prolific layers that could lay 120 to 250 eggs a year.
They tend to be noisy, so they won’t fit in confinement. But, if you have enough space, they can be a great choice for you.
When raising them, you can only encounter minimal health problems because they’re generally healthy and cold-hardy.
7. Light Brahma Chicken
Origin: | United States |
Primary Use: | Exhibition and meat and egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 11 pounds |
Hen: 8.5 pounds | |
Bantam variety: | Yes |
Egg color and size: | Medium brown eggs |
Temperament: | Gentle giant, docile, and hardy |
Out of all black-and-white hens, Brahma is the heaviest and one of the most well-known farm breeds around.
Light Brahma is a gentle giant in the world of chickens, with cocks that may weigh up to 11 pounds.
These make great table birds because of their size! But, because of their sluggish maturity, the industry avoids them.
But the good news is this large black and white chicken is a prolific egg layer! Each year, it can lay up to 200 brown eggs.
The breed is highly tolerant of the cold, and the feathers in their feet help them retain heat even in chilly conditions, but they struggle with extreme heat.
In addition to their practical functions, ornamental poultry enthusiasts like them for their sophisticated personalities and complex color patterns.
You surely won’t regret raising them because of their great personality, even if you have children around.
8. Lakenvelder
Origin: | Netherlands or Germany |
Primary Use: | Egg and meat production and ornamental |
Weight: | Cock: 5 pounds |
Hen: 4 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Small to medium white or tinted eggs |
Temperament: | Active, good foragers, but might dominate other breeds |
This breed was first developed between the border of the Netherlands and Germany, so they’ve begun to appear in the two countries.
But, in the first century BCE, Jewish settlers brought Lakenvelder chickens‘ ancestors before developing them.
Their name Lakenvelder was a dutch term that means “white spread over a black field.” That’s why other homesteaders refer to them as shadows on the sheet.
They might not be ideal chickens for producing a lot of meat and eggs because of their size. However, they’ve become known because of their tastiest meat and eggs.
Because they’re lightweight, they can move quickly and faster to avoid predators. They also enjoy and love being in a free range because they’re great foragers.
So, if you have vast space in your backyard, don’t forget to consider them as part of your flocks.
9. Mottled Ancona
Origin: | Ancona, Italy |
Primary Use: | Egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 6 pounds |
Hen: 4.5 pounds | |
Bantam variety: | Yes |
Egg color and size: | Large white eggs |
Temperament: | Active, playful, entertaining, and loves to free range |
The name Ancona came from its origin in Ancona, Italy. But the Mottled Ancona is just one of Ancona’s color variants.
They’re mottled because of their random black or white spots over their plumage.
They are only a medium size breed that reaches 4.5 to 6 pounds when mature. However, they’re great layers with an average of 220 large white eggs per year and don’t get broody.
This black chicken with white specks enjoys being in an expansive backyard because it makes them active and excited for a long day of foraging.
Their ability to forage well makes them easy to handle and raise, and they spend less on food. The little they consume feed, the more eggs they produce.
Furthermore, their playful personality will make you feel stress-free while having fun with them.
10. Appenzeller Spitzhauben
Origin: | Switzerland |
Primary Use: | Egg productions |
Weight: | Cock: 3.3 pounds |
Hen: 2.2 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | White eggs |
Temperament: | Light, a great forager |
The Appenzeller Spitzhauben is a striking black and white chicken with rare Swiss roots.
It’s the skinhead chicken on this list with a distinctive sharp V-comb and feather crest. Despite coming with various color variations, the black-and-white silver-spangled is the most popular, and it’s easy to see why.
Its plumage looks visually pleasing and almost similar to the Hamburg breed but more refined.
To clear up some confusion, the term “spitzhauben” refers to a pointed ceremonial hat worn by ladies in the Appenzeller region.
This breed is saved from extinction in the 1980s, but the Appenzeller is uncommon in North America today. In fact, national registries like the American Poultry Association do not officially recognize it.
However, this breed can also be an excellent addition to your flocks.
11. Plymouth Rock
Origin: | United States |
Primary Use: | Meat and egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 9.5 pounds |
Hen: 7.5 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Tinted to Brown large eggs |
Temperament: | Hardy, an excellent egg producer and docile |
This all-around chicken breed is a prolific egg layer and an excellent meat producer.
The matured cock can produce meat up to 4. 3 kilograms or 9.5 pounds, while hens are as heavy as 3.4 kg or 7.5 pounds.
In terms of egg-laying, they’re one of the productive breeds for laying 4 to 5 eggs per week. Every year, Plymouth Rock chickens can produce an average of 230 tinted or brown eggs.
Their original variety is this barred black and white, and the other types developed after them.
An interesting fact about this breed is that they contributed to developing broiler chickens for industrial purposes.
Additionally, what makes them great is that they’re hardy in both cold and heat seasons, docile, and low-maintenance birds.
12. Dominique
Origin: | United States |
Primary Use: | Eggs and meat production |
Weight: | Cock: 7 pounds |
Hen: 5 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Medium-light to brown eggs |
Temperament: | Hardy in hot or humid climates, good-tempered |
Dominique chickens have similar plumage patterns to the Plymouth Rock breed. Their feathers are equally divided by black and white, called cuckoo pattern or hawk-colored.
This pattern helps them avoid and escape from predators because it’s like an optical illusion.
It was said that the Dominique chicken is the oldest among all American chicken breeds despite their theories of origin.
Dominique is famous for being a dual-purpose breed, and they are good table meat for your whole family because of their medium size.
On the other hand, they’re also prolific layers of 230 to 270 light to brown medium eggs every year. With that quantity, you can provide for the needs of your family.
Another good thing about them is that they’re hardy breeds, especially in a hot and humid area.
13. Wybar Chicken
Origin: | United Kindom |
Primary Use: | Meat, eggs, and ornamental |
Weight: | Cock: 6.5 to 9 pounds |
Hen: 5.5 to 7 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Tinted large eggs |
Temperament: | Friendly, calm, and docile |
We’re down to the autosexing breed on this list, the Wybar, which resulted from the breeders’ experiment in the 20th century.
Breeders used Wyandotte and Plymouth Rock and later crossed with Sussex to develop this triple-purpose breed.
The successful breeding outcome in autosexing means that they can be easily identified even after hatching.
They are great in meat production because a mature Wybar cock or hen can weigh from 5.5 to 9 pounds. They’re also great layers because they can produce 200 or more eggs per year.
Other than that, they are family-friendly, calm, docile, and always love to dig and forage everywhere.
Though they’re not the greatest among all breeds, they still bring many benefits if you add them to your collections.
14. Columbian Wyandotte
Origin: | United States |
Primary Use: | Eggs and meat production |
Weight: | Cock: 8.5 pounds |
Hen: 6.5 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Brown or light brown medium eggs |
Temperament: | Calm, friendly, kind-hearted, and hardy |
This beautiful Columbian Wyandotte is the fruit of crossbreeding a Barred Plymouth Rock and a White Wyandotte.
They are good layers producing around 200 to 250 light to brown medium eggs yearly. Second, they grow big that weigh from 6.5 to 8.5 pounds when they get mature.
Columbian Wyandottes are among the hardiest breeds, especially in the cold season, and can tolerate even the coldest winter.
They love foraging to search for food, but like other breeds, they become the most accessible target by aerial predators.
So, if you own or still planning to raise one, especially those chicks, ensure to provide them with a safe coop where predators can’t easily approach.
15. Cuckoo Marans
Origin: | France |
Primary Use: | Meat and egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 9 pounds |
Hen: 7.5 pounds | |
Bantam Variety: | Yes |
Egg Color and Size: | Brown large eggs |
Temperament: | Easy-going, calm, and friendly |
Cuckoo Marans are barred black and white chickens, like Plymouth Rock and Dominique chickens, but their plumage has more shades of black than white.
The things that set them apart are their pinkish-white legs, orange eyes, and white soles.
They’re also for dual-purpose black and white chickens with an average of 150 to 200 large brown eggs. And when they get mature, they can weigh up to 7 to 9 pounds.
Although they can’t tolerate heat, they are best in winter. But if you want to keep them even if the temperature is high, provide them with enough water to keep them always hydrated.
You will surely love them for their easygoing personality. They can remain calm and show friendly nature even with many people.
16. California Gray
Origin: | California, USA |
Primary Use: | Meat and egg production |
Weight: | Cock: 5.5 to 6 pounds |
Hen: 4.5 pounds | |
Bantam variety: | None |
Egg color and size: | Large white eggs |
Temperament: | Exceptionally hardy, less flighty, tolerate confinement well, and friendly |
Another barred chicken breed on this list is the California Gray chicken, which was developed around 1930.
They’re a little smaller than other breeds, but they belong to dual-purpose black and white breeds of chickens.
They can grow from 4.5 to 6 pounds when they mature, as long as they’re healthy and have enough feed. And out of all white and black chicken breeds, they don’t have a Bantam variety.
But the best thing about them is that they’re excellent egg producers that can reach up to 300 large eggs a year.
So, you can abundantly provide for your family’s needs with that quantity.
On top of that, they’re versatile, flexible, friendly, and pleasant. That’s why they don’t mind if they live in confinement or free range.
So, if you own or still planning to raise them, you need to properly take care of them and give them their needs like food and water.
17. Egyptian Fayoumi
Origin: | Egypt |
Primary Use: | Eggs and exhibitions |
Weight: | Cock: 4.5 pounds |
Hen: 3.5 pounds | |
Bantam variety: | Yes |
Egg color and size: | White or cream small eggs |
Temperament: | Hot hardy, alert, and athletic |
We’re wrapping up our list with the Egyptian Fayoumi, a breed raised by farmers on the banks of the Nile River.
It wasn’t until the 1940s (USA) and 1980s that the ancient Egyptian breed known as the Fayoumi made it to the West (UK). They have long necks, big eyes, and raised tails.
The standard color scheme is penciled in, with a golden Egyptian Fayoumi chicken and a silver variant.
Fayoumi is a hot-hardy bird that does well in hot regions but struggles in the cold. It’s ideal for free-range systems since they are outstanding foragers, active, and alert.
Despite the small size, they’re prized for their eggs because they taste fantastic and have less cholesterol.
They’re fast-maturing since a Fayoumi hen can start laying at 4 to 5 months old.
So if you want to get eggs as soon as possible, they can be a great choice.
Types of Patterns in Black and White Chickens
You probably have observed that the white & black chicken breeds above vary in pattern, making them alluring and unique.
Here are the different types of plumage patterns they possess.
1. Laced Pattern
The margins of the chicken’s feathers are darker, making them lace-like. They nearly seem to have dark trim on their plumage.
2. Columbian
This pattern is represented by seemingly random black spots on a white chicken. They typically appear on the tail, wings, and neck.
The black restrictor effect, which causes these phenomena, restricts the expression of the color black in other areas of the bird.
3. Spangled
In this instance, the centers of the feathers lack pigmentation, resulting in the appearance of many circular spots throughout the body.
The perfect example of this is the Silver Laced Hamburg and Appenzeller.
4. Mottled
You can distinguish this type of plumage pattern with bare ends or edges. They look like blackbirds in general, but their feather tips are white.
5. Penciled
This pattern features feathers with trim or emphasis on either side. And just like the laced chickens, they possess both the outer and inner trim.
6. Barred
Striped designs are those with bars in them. Yet, looking at each feather separately, you can see them more clearly.
The bird’s overall plumage may not display stripes. You must therefore pay close attention to the small print.
Black and White Chickens: Final Thoughts
So, there you have it! Those are the 17 fancy black and white chickens on this planet that can surely add colors to your collection.
Out of the 17 chicken breeds above, including the Silver Wyandotte, Silver Laced Polish, Light Sussex, Thüringian Chicken, Brahmas, and Plymouth Rock, which is your favorite?
Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.