What color eggs do Ayam Cemani lay?

**Cream to lightly tinted** eggs — the breed club describes the shell as white-tinted-to-cream, and importing hatcheries report cream eggs (sometimes with a faint pink cast). Hens lay a modest 60–120 small-to-medium eggs a year. They do **not** lay black eggs.

Are Ayam Cemani good for showing?

They're shown at **ornamental, exotic, and rare-breed exhibitions, not APA shows** — the breed is not APA-recognized and has no APA Standard. Judging (at breed-club and exotic shows) focuses on completeness of the black: solid black points, a black mouth/tongue, and lustrous black plumage, with pink in the mouth or pale skin counting against a bird.

How hard are Ayam Cemani to hatch?

No harder than any chicken — **99.5–100°F, lockdown day 18, 21-day hatch**. There are no breed-specific incubation quirks. Fertility can be lower in some lines, and eggs are pricey, so source from a reputable breeder.

Why are Ayam Cemani so expensive, and how do I avoid scams?

Rarity and their dramatic all-black look drive very high prices, which attracts misrepresentation. Crosses and incompletely fibromelanistic birds get sold as pure Cemani, and exaggerated 'black egg' or 'black blood' claims are red flags. Buy from breeders who can show fully black mouths and points and provide honest lineage.

What makes an Ayam Cemani completely black?

A trait called **fibromelanosis**, driven by the **Fm gene**, which deposits melanin throughout the skin, connective tissue, muscle, bone, and organs. In a top bird every visible point — comb, face, wattles, earlobes, beak, eyes, shanks, toes, and the tongue/mouth — is intensely black.

Ayam Cemani: The All-Black Chicken That Does Not Lay Black Eggs

Q: Do Ayam Cemani lay black eggs?

**No.** This is a myth. Despite the bird being all black inside and out from fibromelanosis, the Fm gene doesn't reach the shell gland, so the eggs come out an ordinary **cream/tinted** color. No chicken breed lays a naturally black egg.

Verified September 2026Cream eggs

The short version

The Ayam Cemani is an Indonesian landrace prized for fibromelanosis — the Fm gene turns its feathers, skin, comb, muscle, bone, and even internal organs an inky black. Despite the all-black bird, it lays a cream/tinted egg, never a black egg (the 'black egg' claim is a myth). It is not recognized by the APA — there is no APA Standard for Ayam Cemani — so it is kept and shown as an ornamental/exotic breed rather than in APA classes. Expect solid-black points, modest laying (roughly 60–120 small cream eggs a year), and a high-priced market where scams are common.

APA class: Ornamental

Egg color: Cream–Tinted

Broodiness: Occasionally broody

Varieties: 1

Egg-color genetics

Ayam Cemani lay a cream to lightly tinted egg — sometimes described as cream with a faint pink cast. The bird's spectacular black comes from fibromelanosis (the Fm gene), which floods skin, muscle, bone, and connective tissue with melanin; but that pigment does not reach the shell gland, so the egg is an ordinary cream/tinted color, not black. The 'Ayam Cemani lays black eggs' claim is a persistent myth with no basis in the breed's genetics.

Do Ayam Cemani lay black eggs?

No. This is the single most common misconception about the breed. The Ayam Cemani Breeders Association states the shell color is white tinted to cream, and the importing hatchery (Greenfire Farms) describes hens laying cream-colored eggs (often with a slight pink hue), typically 60–120 small-to-medium eggs in the first year.

The confusion comes from fibromelanosis: because the bird's skin, meat, bones, and organs are black, people assume the eggs must be too. But the Fm gene doesn't affect the shell gland, so the egg is a perfectly ordinary cream/tinted color. There is no chicken breed that lays a naturally black egg.

Is the Ayam Cemani an APA breed?

No. The Ayam Cemani is an Indonesian landrace (originating on Java) and is not recognized by the American Poultry Association — there is no APA Standard of Perfection for it. On this site it sits in an Ornamental grouping because it's a popular exotic that falls outside the APA classes.

The Ayam Cemani Breeders Association has worked toward recognition and maintains its own draft/breed standard for exhibitors, but until the APA admits the breed, treat any 'APA variety' listing for Ayam Cemani as inaccurate. Breed and show to the club standard, not to APA text.

Breeding notes

Select for complete fibromelanosis: the goal is uniform, intense black through every visible point — comb, face, wattles, earlobes, beak, eyes, shanks, toes, and even the tongue and mouth. Any pink in the mouth or pale patches signals incomplete fibro and should be culled from a breeding pen.
Fibromelanosis (the Fm gene) is the whole point of the breed: a duplication/rearrangement upstream of the EDN3 gene drives melanin into the skin, connective tissue, muscle, bone, and organs. Breed only your blackest, most completely pigmented birds to keep the trait strong across generations.
Watch the market carefully: Ayam Cemani command very high prices, which draws scams and misrepresentation. Crosses and mixed-fibro birds are routinely sold as pure Cemani, and inflated 'black egg' or 'black blood' claims are red flags. Buy from breeders who can show fully black mouths/points and honest lineage, and treat bargain birds skeptically.
Plumage should be a lustrous, iridescent black with dull-black undercolor throughout — feathers that show off-color, purple barring beyond normal sheen, or brassiness in the sun are less desirable for breeding stock.

Showing notes

Ayam Cemani is NOT APA-recognized, so it is not shown in APA large-fowl or bantam classes and has no APA Standard of Perfection. It is exhibited at ornamental, exotic, and rare-breed shows and displays instead.
Where it is judged (breed-club shows and exotic exhibitions), the emphasis is on completeness of the black: solid black points top to bottom — comb, face, wattles, earlobes, beak, shanks, toes, and a black tongue/mouth — plus lustrous black plumage. Pink in the mouth or pale skin patches are common downfalls.
The Ayam Cemani Breeders Association maintains its own written standard for exhibitors; use that rather than any APA text, since no APA standard exists for the breed.

Hatching & incubation

No special incubation requirements — treat Ayam Cemani eggs like any chicken egg: 99.5–100°F forced-air, lockdown day 18, 21-day hatch.
Chicks hatch dark and get darker; a fully fibromelanistic chick is black-skinned and black-legged from day one. Genuinely pale skin or legs at hatch can indicate incomplete fibro or crossbreeding.

Recognized varieties

Black (no APA varieties; not APA-recognized)

Frequently asked questions

What color eggs do Ayam Cemani lay?: Cream to lightly tinted eggs — the breed club describes the shell as white-tinted-to-cream, and importing hatcheries report cream eggs (sometimes with a faint pink cast). Hens lay a modest 60–120 small-to-medium eggs a year. They do not lay black eggs.
Do Ayam Cemani lay black eggs?: No. This is a myth. Despite the bird being all black inside and out from fibromelanosis, the Fm gene doesn't reach the shell gland, so the eggs come out an ordinary cream/tinted color. No chicken breed lays a naturally black egg.
Are Ayam Cemani good for showing?: They're shown at ornamental, exotic, and rare-breed exhibitions, not APA shows — the breed is not APA-recognized and has no APA Standard. Judging (at breed-club and exotic shows) focuses on completeness of the black: solid black points, a black mouth/tongue, and lustrous black plumage, with pink in the mouth or pale skin counting against a bird.
How hard are Ayam Cemani to hatch?: No harder than any chicken — 99.5–100°F, lockdown day 18, 21-day hatch. There are no breed-specific incubation quirks. Fertility can be lower in some lines, and eggs are pricey, so source from a reputable breeder.
Why are Ayam Cemani so expensive, and how do I avoid scams?: Rarity and their dramatic all-black look drive very high prices, which attracts misrepresentation. Crosses and incompletely fibromelanistic birds get sold as pure Cemani, and exaggerated 'black egg' or 'black blood' claims are red flags. Buy from breeders who can show fully black mouths and points and provide honest lineage.
What makes an Ayam Cemani completely black?: A trait called fibromelanosis, driven by the Fm gene, which deposits melanin throughout the skin, connective tissue, muscle, bone, and organs. In a top bird every visible point — comb, face, wattles, earlobes, beak, eyes, shanks, toes, and the tongue/mouth — is intensely black.

Sources

Standard of Perfection (breed standard, egg color & fibromelanosis) — Ayam Cemani Breeders Association (ACBA) (Breed club)
Ayam Cemani (breed overview, origin & egg color) — Greenfire Farms (Hatchery)
Ayam Cemani Chicks — Rare Black Chickens — Cackle Hatchery (Hatchery)

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