The Cream Legbar chicken is a crested British autosexing breed best known for laying attractive blue to blue-green eggs and for producing chicks whose sex can usually be identified at hatch from their down pattern.
For backyard keepers, that combination is hard to ignore. You get an active, alert chicken with useful egg production, a distinctive crest, strong foraging instincts, and one of the most practical chick-sexing traits found in a true-breeding poultry line.
Cream Legbars are not tiny lap chickens, and they are not always as calm as heavier breeds such as Cochins or Buff Orpingtons. Temperament can range from curious and friendly to more flighty, depending on the strain and how the birds were raised.
If you are considering Cream Legbars for a U.S. backyard flock, this guide covers their true history, current APA status, size, egg color, autosexing genetics, temperament, broodiness, housing, feeding, winter care, health, and what to look for when buying chicks or hatching eggs.
Cream Legbar Quick Facts
| Origin | Britain |
| Developed by | R.C. Punnett and Michael Pease at Cambridge |
| Presented as a breed | 1947 London Dairy Show |
| British written standard | 1958 |
| First U.S. import of Cream variety | Fall 2010 |
| APA status in the U.S. | Not currently listed as an accepted APA breed or variety |
| Rooster weight | About 7 lb |
| Hen weight | About 5.5 lb |
| Egg color | Blue to blue-green |
| Egg production | Good, often around 180 to 200 eggs per year in productive strains |
| Broodiness | Occasional |
| Temperament | Active, alert, curious, sometimes flighty |
| Special trait | Autosexing chicks |
| Foraging ability | Very good |
What Is a Cream Legbar Chicken?
The Cream Legbar is a light, active chicken developed from Legbar lines and blue-egg-laying South American ancestry. The breed was selected for three especially useful traits: autosexing chicks, blue eggs, and cream-colored plumage with a crest.
The word “autosexing” is important. Cream Legbars are not simply sex-linked crosses that produce one generation of differently colored male and female chicks. Their chick-sexing trait breeds true generation after generation when the line is maintained correctly.
That makes them especially interesting to breeders and backyard keepers who want to identify pullets and cockerels very early without relying on vent sexing.
Cream Legbar History
The Cream Legbar was developed through poultry genetics work associated with Professor Reginald Crundall Punnett and Professor Michael Pease at the University of Cambridge.
Punnett is also well known for the Punnett square used to teach genetic inheritance. His poultry work focused heavily on developing breeds in which chick sex could be recognized from visible characteristics at hatch.
According to the Cream Legbar Club, Punnett received blue-egg-laying crested Chilean hens from botanist Clarence Elliott in 1929. One of those birds contributed to his discovery of recessive cream plumage genetics in poultry.
Pease was conducting his own breeding work with Gold Legbars and White Leghorns. When Punnett and Pease combined their cream-colored lines, they confirmed that they were working with the same recessive cream gene.
Breeders then selected descendants for a crest, a straight single comb, blue egg production, and a clear autosexing chick pattern.
The Cream Legbar was presented at the 1947 London Dairy Show, and the Poultry Club of Great Britain adopted a written standard in May 1958.
This corrects one of the biggest errors in the old version of this article. The Cream Legbar was not “born in 1970.” Its defining characteristics had already been stabilized decades earlier.
When Did Cream Legbars Arrive in the United States?
The Cream variety of Legbar was imported into the United States in the fall of 2010, according to the Cream Legbar Club.
So Cream Legbars have not been established in the United States for nearly a century. Their U.S. history is relatively recent, which helps explain why many American backyard keepers still consider them uncommon compared with breeds such as Rhode Island Reds, Plymouth Rocks, or Leghorns.
Is the Cream Legbar Recognized by the APA?
Not currently.
As of 2026, the American Poultry Association’s accepted breeds and varieties list does not include the Cream Legbar.
The Cream Legbar Club maintains a proposed U.S. Standard of Perfection and a formal “Path to APA Acceptance.” That means American breeders can work toward consistency and exhibit birds in appropriate settings, but you should not describe the Cream Legbar as a currently APA-recognized breed in the same way as the Leghorn, Brahma, Andalusian, or Plymouth Rock.
In Britain, however, the Cream Legbar is a standardized autosexing breed under the Poultry Club of Great Britain.
Cream Legbar, Golden Crele Legbar, and White Legbar
One source of confusion is the way Legbar colors and varieties are named.
The Cream Legbar Club currently describes three U.S. Legbar varieties:
- Cream Legbar
- Golden Crele Legbar
- White Legbar
That is different from saying that the Cream Legbar itself comes in “gold, silver, and cream.” Gold and Silver Legbars have their own history in British autosexing poultry, while the Cream Legbar is a distinct standardized form with cream dilution, cresting, and blue-egg genetics.
You may also see sellers advertising “Crested Cream Legbars.” The Cream Legbar Club specifically calls that a common misnomer because the crest is already part of the Cream Legbar type.
Likewise, “Opal Legbar” should not be treated as a standard synonym for Cream Legbar unless a breeder is clearly describing a separate project line.
What Does Autosexing Mean in Cream Legbars?
Autosexing is one of the Cream Legbar’s best features.
Newly hatched females usually show stronger, darker chipmunk-style striping along the back and head. Males tend to look lighter and more diffuse, often with a pale head spot and less sharply defined dorsal striping.
This visible difference comes from the interaction of barring and sex-linked genetics that has been stabilized within the breed.
That is why it is misleading to call Cream Legbars merely “sex-linked chickens.” A sex-link cross usually gives you a one-generation visual sexing advantage. A true autosexing breed continues producing sex-distinguishable chicks when bred within the breed.
Good breeders select strongly for clear chick markings. The Cream Legbar Club specifically recommends asking whether a breeder’s chicks are easily autosexable before you buy.
Cream Legbar Egg Color
Cream Legbars are best known for laying blue to blue-green eggs.
The proposed U.S. standard lists shell color as blue or green. In practice, different hens and different strains may produce eggs that look more sky blue, turquoise, or slightly greenish.
If you are buying breeding stock specifically for blue eggs, ask the breeder what the hens actually lay. The Cream Legbar Club recommends asking whether all pullets in the line mature to lay blue eggs rather than white, brown, or olive eggs.
That is a better way to think about off-color eggs. White or brown eggs should not be advertised as a normal expected Cream Legbar trait just because a recessive gene “occasionally appears.” For a breeder working toward the standard, egg color is part of selection quality.
If you enjoy colorful egg baskets, see my guide to chickens that lay colored eggs.
How Many Eggs Do Cream Legbars Lay?
Cream Legbars were developed as productive layers, and good lines can lay very well for a heritage-type chicken.
Around 180 to 200 eggs per year is a reasonable general backyard estimate for productive hens, but I would not treat that number as a guarantee.
Actual laying depends on the strain, age, nutrition, health, daylight, molt, climate, and whether the hen becomes broody.
The Cream Legbar Club describes the breed as a prolific blue-egg layer rather than defining one fixed annual number for every hen. That is a more realistic way to think about production.
When Do Cream Legbars Start Laying?
Many pullets begin laying at around 5 to 6 months of age, but individual birds can mature earlier or later.
Hatch date, strain, body development, nutrition, and daylight all affect the start of lay. If a pullet looks healthy but has not started exactly at 20 or 24 weeks, that does not automatically mean something is wrong.
Cream Legbar Size and Appearance
The Cream Legbar Club’s proposed U.S. standard lists the following mature weights:
- Cock: about 7 lb
- Hen: about 5.5 lb
- Cockerel: about 6 lb
- Pullet: about 4.5 lb
They are light, athletic chickens rather than heavy dual-purpose birds.
Typical features include a single comb, white earlobes, yellow legs, a moderately long body, close feathering, and a distinct crest positioned behind the comb.
Mature males show cream and gray barring with some permissible chestnut in parts of the plumage. Females are softer in color, with gray barring, cream in the hackles and crest, and a salmon-toned breast.
Cream Legbar Temperament
Cream Legbar temperament varies more than many short breed summaries admit.
Many are friendly, curious, alert, and easy to work around. Others are more nervous or flighty, especially if they were not handled much when young.
The breed club itself recommends asking breeders whether their line tends to be “extremely flighty” or more “docile, friendly and curious.” That tells you something important: strain matters.
I would not label the whole breed as loud, difficult to control, or unfriendly. At the same time, I would not promise every Cream Legbar will act like a lap chicken.
They are best suited to keepers who enjoy active birds that spend much of the day exploring and foraging.
Are Cream Legbars Good With Other Chickens?
Usually, yes.
Cream Legbars can fit well into mixed flocks when there is enough space and enough feeding, watering, and roosting access for everyone.
Because they are active and quick, very timid heavy breeds may sometimes be pushed around in cramped conditions. The opposite can also happen if you add a small group of Legbars to an established flock with dominant hens.
Slow introductions and plenty of space matter more than the breed name alone.
Do Cream Legbar Hens Go Broody?
Some do.
Cream Legbars are generally more focused on laying than strongly broody breeds, but broodiness can appear in individual hens and particular strains.
The Cream Legbar Club notes that some females go broody and can make excellent mothers.
So the most accurate description is occasional broodiness, not “never broody” and not “usually broody.”
Free-Ranging and Foraging
Cream Legbars are excellent foragers.
They like to stay busy searching for insects, greens, seeds, and anything else worth investigating. Their alert temperament can also make them quicker to react to suspicious movement than some heavier breeds.
That does not make them predator-proof. Hawks, foxes, raccoons, coyotes, dogs, and other predators can still kill an alert chicken very quickly.
Use a secure coop at night and a protected run where predator pressure is high. See my guide to common chicken predators for more help.
How Much Space Do Cream Legbars Need?
I would not squeeze Cream Legbars into the smallest possible coop just because they are lighter than Brahmas or Orpingtons.
They are active birds, and outdoor space is especially valuable for this breed.
Penn State Extension’s 2026 small-scale poultry housing guide lists minimums of about 1.5 square feet indoors and 8 square feet in an outdoor run per laying hen, with 2 square feet indoors and 10 square feet outside for larger chickens.
Those are minimums, not targets you should try to stay below. If you can give active Cream Legbars more run space, they will use it.
A secure roof or higher fencing can also help because active light breeds may clear low fences more easily than heavy chickens.
For planning your setup, see how much space chickens need.
Feeding Cream Legbar Chickens
Good foraging ability does not mean Cream Legbars can live on grass and bugs alone.
Use a complete poultry feed matched to the bird’s age and production stage.
- Feed chicks a complete starter ration.
- Move growing birds to an appropriate grower/developer feed.
- Use a complete layer feed for mature laying hens.
- Offer clean water at all times.
- Keep treats and scratch grains limited so they do not dilute the balanced diet.
Foraging is best treated as enrichment and a dietary supplement, not the nutritional foundation of the flock.
Cold Weather and Frostbite
Cream Legbars can live in cold climates, but their relatively large single comb deserves extra attention in freezing weather.
Comb and wattle tissue is vulnerable to frostbite, especially when the coop is damp or poorly ventilated.
Your first winter priorities should be:
- Keep the coop dry.
- Provide ventilation without strong drafts across roosting birds.
- Keep bedding from becoming wet or ammonia-heavy.
- Keep drinking water available and unfrozen.
- Watch large combs and wattles during extreme cold.
I would not describe the breed as automatically suited to every climate just because individual birds are hardy.
For more winter help, see frostbite in chickens.
Do Cream Legbars Lay in Winter?
Some will, but production often drops as natural daylight shortens.
It is too broad to say that Cream Legbars simply “do not lay eggs in winter.” Age, daylight, strain, molt, health, and nutrition all affect winter production.
If you use supplemental winter lighting, Penn State Extension recommends maintaining a controlled total day length and not exceeding about 16 hours of light for adult layers. Letting the birds roost naturally at sunset and adding light in the morning is generally easier on the flock than abruptly lighting them late at night.
Health and Routine Care
Cream Legbars are generally hardy, but “hardy” does not mean disease-proof.
Use the same basic health routine you would use for any well-managed backyard flock:
- Balanced feed and clean water
- Dry bedding and good ventilation
- Quarantine for new birds
- Regular checks for mites, lice, and other parasites
- Predator-proof housing
- Prompt attention to injuries, respiratory signs, weight loss, or abnormal droppings
The crest is worth checking during routine handling because lice or mites can hide around dense feathers, but that does not mean Cream Legbars have a unique crest-parasite disease.
See chicken mites, lice and fleas for identification and control basics.
Cream Legbar vs Araucana, Ameraucana, and Easter Egger
These chickens are often grouped together because they can all be associated with blue or green eggs, but they are not the same.
Cream Legbar
A British autosexing breed with a crest, single comb, light body type, and blue to blue-green eggs. It is not currently APA accepted in the United States.
Araucana
The U.S. Araucana is an APA-recognized breed with its own standard and distinctive breed traits. Cream Legbars inherited blue-egg ancestry from South American birds, but that does not make them Araucanas.
Read more in my Araucana chicken guide.
Ameraucana
The Ameraucana is a separate standardized U.S. breed known for blue eggs, muffs, beard, pea comb, and specific accepted varieties.
Easter Egger
Easter Egger is a broad hatchery/backyard term rather than one uniform standardized breed. Easter Eggers can vary widely in color, body type, temperament, and egg shade.
What to Ask Before Buying Cream Legbars
If you are buying chicks, started pullets, adults, or hatching eggs, a few questions can tell you much more than a fancy sales description.
- Are the chicks clearly autosexable at hatch?
- Do all breeding females lay blue or blue-green eggs?
- What is the temperament of the breeder’s line?
- At what age do their pullets normally start laying?
- How productive are the mature hens?
- Have recessive white or crestless chicks appeared?
- What health testing, vaccination, or biosecurity practices does the breeder use?
This is much more useful than shopping based only on egg color or the phrase “rare breed.”
Pros of Raising Cream Legbars
- Blue to blue-green eggs
- Autosexing chicks
- Good egg production in productive strains
- Excellent foraging ability
- Distinctive crest and attractive plumage
- Active, alert temperament
- Can work well in mixed flocks
Cons of Raising Cream Legbars
- Some lines can be flighty
- Need more outdoor space than cramped setups provide
- Large single combs need attention in severe cold
- Egg color and autosexing quality vary between breeder lines
- Not currently APA accepted in the United States
- Less common than mainstream hatchery breeds
Frequently Asked Questions
What color eggs do Cream Legbars lay?
They lay blue to blue-green eggs. The exact shade varies by hen and breeder line.
Are Cream Legbars autosexing?
Yes. Male and female chicks usually show different down patterns at hatch, and this trait breeds true when the line is maintained correctly.
Are Cream Legbars sex-linked?
The genetics behind autosexing involve sex-linked barring, but Cream Legbars should be described as an autosexing breed rather than a one-generation commercial sex-link cross.
Are Cream Legbars recognized by the APA?
No. As of 2026, they are not listed among the American Poultry Association’s accepted breeds and varieties. The Cream Legbar Club maintains a proposed U.S. standard and continues working toward acceptance.
Are Cream Legbars friendly?
Many are friendly, curious, and easy to manage, while some strains are more nervous or flighty. Breeder selection and early handling make a noticeable difference.
Do Cream Legbars go broody?
Sometimes. Broodiness is not one of their strongest traits, but individual hens and some strains do go broody and can make good mothers.
How many eggs do Cream Legbars lay?
Productive hens often fall around the 180-to-200-egg-per-year range, but annual output varies with genetics, daylight, age, nutrition, molt, broodiness, and management.
Conclusion
The Cream Legbar has earned its popularity for good reasons.
You get a crested, active blue-egg layer with strong foraging ability and a genuinely useful autosexing trait that can let you distinguish male and female chicks at hatch.
The breed also comes with a few realities worth understanding. U.S. Cream Legbars have only been here since 2010, they are not yet APA accepted, temperament varies between lines, and active birds need more than a tiny coop and run.
If you buy from a breeder who selects for clear chick autosexing, correct blue egg color, healthy body type, and good temperament, Cream Legbars can be a distinctive and practical addition to a backyard flock.
Sources
- Cream Legbar Club: Proposed Cream Legbar Standard of Perfection
- Cream Legbar Club: Breed History and U.S. Import Information
- Cream Legbar Club: Buying and Breeder Selection Guidance
- American Poultry Association: Accepted Breeds and Varieties
- Poultry Club of Great Britain: Cream Legbar
- Penn State Extension: Small Scale Poultry Housing
