The Kellogg’s Corn Flakes’ mascot, Cornelius Rooster, is a Welsummer. He debuted on cereal boxes in 1957 with a green body, red comb and yellow beak. He projected a decidedly confident personality.
The Welsummer was developed in the Netherlands during the early 20th century. A farmer in the Dutch village of Welsum, the breed’s namesake, created the breed by crossing Barnevelders with native birds until he reached a cross with stability. The standard dual-purpose Welsummer chicken breed is a moderately fast-maturing bird that produces excellent meat.
Bantam roosters weigh 34 ounces; hens, 30 ounces.
The American Poultry Association recognizes one color, although breeders are working to produce more varieties. Males appear predominantly golden to reddish-brown with a black breast, body and tail with brown mottling; their wings are reddish-brown with some black highlighting. Females are mostly reddish-brown with a stippling of black or gray on some of the feathers.
Welsummer hens lay on annual average 200 large eggs, which are famous for their terra-cotta color. Hens become moderately broody and make good mothers.
Mature males weigh as much as 7 pounds. Hens weigh 6 pounds.
This story originally appeared in the March/April 2018 issue of Chickens magazine.
