Overheard my neighbor telling his kid chickens are basically tiny dinosaurs

He was pointing at my Barred Rock, Bertha, and said 'See that? That's a T-Rex with feathers.' It made me watch them differently, especially when they chase a grasshopper. Anyone else have a flock of backyard raptors?

3 comments

3 Comments

evanh272mo ago

Isn't that comparison a bit of a stretch? Chickens are birds, and birds did come from dinosaurs, but calling them raptors feels like a fun story more than science. My hens act more like little feathered pigs, scratching and eating everything in sight, not hunting with any real plan. The dinosaur link is cool, but I see them as their own thing now.

ray_foster672mo ago

Okay but hear me out. What if the "scratching and eating everything" IS the hunting plan? A velociraptor wouldn't pass up an easy bug or lizard just sitting there. My rooster goes after mice in the barn like it's his job, and he's got a pretty good success rate. Isn't that just a simple, effective way to hunt without needing a big brain?

haydengreen1mo ago

My uncle's farm in Ohio has chickens that do exactly what @evanh27 described, just scratching and eating anything that moves. Honestly, I see that same basic "find food, eat food" plan in my dog chasing squirrels and my cat watching birds. It's a simple loop that works for a lot of animals, so ray_foster67 might be onto something with that idea.