The Blue Orpington breeds are a large, docile chicken breed. The feathering allows the endurance of cold temperatures better than other breeds. The Orpington is considered an active fowl and does well either confined or free-range. They have a friendly disposition and lay large light beige eggs. They are excellent egg layers.This breed come from the parent stock of a Black Orpington rooster over a Splash Orpington hen. This combination will give a richer deeper color Blue Orpington offspring. They are a large breed with rich feather color and dark eyes. They are excellent layers and as they get older their eggs get larger. They lay a light brown to a beige color. The Blue Orpington has a docile nature, very friendly to the point they easily become pets. They are excellent layers of large to extra-large eggs and prefer to lay in the cooler months. Their eggs are light beige color and they average between 180 to 200 eggs per year. Its large size and soft appearance together with its rich colors make it attractive and popular as show birds. The hens often become broody and are good mothers. Even though they are a heavy bird, they are able to fly small distances, but rarely do so. The Orpington is a breed of chicken named after the town of Orpington, Kent in southeast England. The original Black Orpington was bred by William Cook in 1886 by crossing Minorcas, Langshans and Plymouth Rocks. The feathering allows the endurance of cold temperatures better than other breeds. The Orpington is considered an active fowl and does well either confined or free-range. Their personality is calm and gentle; however, their docile disposition leads to bullying by more aggressive breeds.