Penedesenca: Spain's Very-Dark-Egg Breed

Egg-color genetics

The Penedesenca lays some of the darkest brown eggs of any chicken, rivaling the Marans. The dark color is a heavy brown (protoporphyrin) pigment coating laid down over a pale base shell late in the egg's passage through the oviduct — it sits on the surface, so it can smudge or rub off on a freshly-laid egg and each hen's eggs generally lighten as she lays deeper into the season. Because that dark-brown coating stacks on top of a blue base to make olive, a Penedesenca cock over blue-egg hens is a prized 'dark' father for producing deep olive eggs, which is why the breed shows up in serious olive-egger projects.

Why the eggs are so dark

Penedesenca eggs are laid with a thick layer of brown pigment on the outside of an otherwise pale shell, applied near the end of the egg's time in the hen. Because that coating is on the surface, the color is at its most intense on the first eggs of a laying cycle and fades toward a lighter reddish- or terracotta-brown as the season wears on and the hen's pigment reserves are drawn down. This is the same mechanism that makes Marans eggs dark, and it is why serious dark-egg keepers judge a hen on her best early eggs, not her late ones.

One quirk that surprises newcomers: the Penedesenca lays dark brown eggs despite having white earlobes. In most breeds white earlobes go with white eggs, so the combination is a distinctive hallmark of the breed rather than a fault.

A Spanish breed, not an American show breed

The Penedesenca was developed in Catalonia, in the Penedès wine region around Vilafranca del Penedès, and its black standard was formalized in the 1940s. The breed nearly disappeared in the mid-20th century and was revived from the 1980s onward. It reached the United States relatively recently and remains rare here. Because it is not recognized by the American Poultry Association, U.S. keepers treat it as an ornamental/heritage rare breed — great for a dark-egg or olive-egger project, but without an APA class to compete in as a Standard breed.

Breeding notes

• Select hard for egg color first: dark-brown shell color is heritable but individual, and every hen's eggs lighten as the laying season goes on. Save hatching eggs only from your darkest layers, and only early in their cycle, to pull the flock toward deeper color over generations.
• The signature carnation (king's) comb is the type trait to protect — a single comb in front that splits into several distinct lobes or points at the rear, like a small crown. Cull birds whose combs revert to a plain single comb with no rear lobing, and watch that the comb doesn't become oversized or floppy.
• Expect a flighty, wild temperament: Penedesencas are alert, high-strung, excellent foragers that resent confinement and can fly well. Rear them with steady, calm handling and give them space; nervous stock is harder to pen-mate and to pose for a judge.
• For olive eggers, run a Penedesenca cock over blue-egg hens (e.g. a true blue layer): the breed's heavy dark-brown coating over a blue base is what produces deep olive, and the darker the sire line's eggs, the greener the daughters.
• The Crele variety is autosexing — cockerels and pullets show different chick down — which lets breeders sort sexes at hatch without vent-sexing.

Showing notes

• The Penedesenca is not recognized by the American Poultry Association, so there is no APA Standard to weigh birds against and it cannot be shown for APA points as a Standard breed; in the U.S. it appears mainly at breed displays, poultry-club exhibitions, and rare-breed showcases rather than in a class at a licensed APA meet.
• It is recognized in Europe (Entente Européenne) and listed by the Poultry Club of Great Britain, so European exhibitors do have a written standard to show under — the reference point emphasizes the carnation comb, white (red-edged) earlobes, and slate-blue legs.
• Condition for the show hall by keeping the lean, upright Mediterranean type clean and the comb undamaged; the white earlobes should be clean and unblemished, which is fiddly on an active bird that likes to range.

Hatching & incubation

• Standard chicken incubation applies: about 99.5–100°F forced-air, lockdown day 18, 21-day hatch — there is no special temperature or humidity requirement for the breed.
• The very dark shells are genuinely harder to candle: the heavy brown pigment blocks light, so early fertility and air-cell checks are tougher than on pale eggs. Use a strong candler, candle in a fully dark room, and expect to rely more on weight loss and float-free handling than on seeing through the shell.
• The surface pigment can rub or smudge on fresh eggs — set them with minimal handling and don't scrub the bloom off, or you'll dull the very color the breed is prized for.

Recognized varieties

Frequently asked questions

What color eggs do Penedesencas lay?

+

Very dark brown eggs — among the darkest of any chicken, rivaling the Marans, often described as reddish- or terracotta-brown and sometimes near-mahogany on the first eggs of the season. The color is a surface coating that fades lighter as the hen lays deeper into her cycle, so her darkest eggs come early.

Are Penedesencas good for showing?

+

Not in the U.S. as an APA breed — the Penedesenca is a Spanish breed not recognized by the American Poultry Association, so there's no APA Standard to show it under and no APA class for it. It is recognized in Europe (Entente Européenne, Poultry Club of Great Britain), where exhibitors do have a written standard, and in the U.S. it appears at breed displays and rare-breed showcases.

How hard are Penedesencas to hatch?

+

Incubation itself is standard — 99.5–100°F, lockdown day 18, 21-day hatch, no special settings. The real difficulty is candling: the very dark shells block light, so checking fertility and air cells is much harder than with pale eggs. Use a bright candler in a fully dark room and lean on weight-loss tracking.

What is a carnation or king's comb?

+

It's the Penedesenca's signature comb: a single comb at the front that breaks into several distinct lobes or points at the rear, like a small crown — hence 'king's comb.' It's one of the easiest ways to recognize the breed and the main type trait breeders select for.

Are Penedesencas broody?

+

Rarely. Like most lean Mediterranean-type breeds, Penedesencas seldom go broody and aren't reliable natural mothers, so plan on an incubator or a broody hen of another breed to hatch their eggs. They are also flighty and active foragers rather than lap chickens.

Why are Penedesencas used in olive-egger breeding?

+

Because olive is made by layering a dark brown coating over a blue base. A Penedesenca — one of the darkest brown layers — bred to blue-egg hens passes that heavy brown pigment to the offspring, producing deep olive eggs. The darker the Penedesenca line, the greener the resulting olive eggers.

Related

• MaransThe other benchmark for very dark brown eggs
• Olive Egger calculatorCross a dark-brown father over blue layers to predict olive
• AmeraucanaTrue blue-egg breed — the blue base for olive eggers

More breeds & tools

• Ayam CemaniCream eggs · Ornamental
• SeramaCream eggs · Ornamental
• ShowgirlCream eggs · Ornamental
• Cream LegbarBlue eggs · Ornamental
• Easter EggerBlue eggs · Ornamental
• Olive EggerOlive eggs · Ornamental
• Olive egger calculatorPredict F1/F2 egg colors from parent breeds
• Breeding & hatching guidesPens, egg color, showing