Why can't chickens fly?

The short answer

Chickens actually can fly, but their body structure and selective breeding limit them to short bursts rather than sustained flight. Certain farming practices also intentionally or unintentionally hamper their flying capabilities.

The long answer

Let me stop you right there: Chickens can fly!

GIF of a chicken flying.
Source: ​Chicken Channel​

They just can't fly that well. When they do, it’s typically only a brief burst upward rather than sustained flight.

Now that we've busted the myth of the flightless chicken, here are some reasons why chickens can't fly ... very well:

Reason #1: Modern chickens are closely related to the jungle fowl.

Today's chickens are closely related to the jungle fowl, a wild bird native to South and Southeast Asia.

"​Red jungle fowl​" by ​Subramanya C K​ is licensed under ​CC BY-SA 3.0​.

Jungle fowl can take short vertical flights but mostly live on the ground, using their wings to reach trees for safety or sleep. This is why their wings are smaller than other birds and their feet aren't well suited for perching on trees.

Chickens share these characteristics with jungle fowl, primarily living on the ground with the occasional, short flight.

Reason #2: Chickens have been selectively bred for meat production to have large breast and thigh muscles.

Over the years, chicken meat consumption has grown—and so has chicken meat.

According to the National Chicken Council, the average American consumed over 100 pounds (~45 kg) of chicken meat in 2022, more than twice the amount consumed in 1983.

But it's not just that people are eating more chickens, it's that we've selectively bred chickens to have abnormally large breast and thigh muscles. Selective breeding is responsible for 85-90% of the increase in chicken body weight between 1957 and 1991.

The diagram illustrates the growth in size of the average broiler chicken, comparing breeds from 1957, 1978, and 2005 (from left to right).
Source: ​Poultry Science​

Chickens have been bred for larger breast muscles and thicker thighs, as these cuts are most popular. But their oversized muscles make flight nearly impossible. In fact, most broiler chickens (bred for meat consumption) spend 90% of their lives lying down, unable to support their weight.

In order for birds to fly, they need a certain "wing loading" ratio, the proportion of body mass to wing area. Birds need to have at least 1 square inch of wing for every 0.6 ounce of body mass (1 square centimeter per 2.5 grams) to fly. When chickens are bred to be unnaturally heavy, they exceed the optimal wing loading ratio and struggle to take off.

Reason #3: Certain backyard and factory farming practices — like wing clipping and forced molting — reduce feather area.

There are also some common farming practices that intentionally or unintentionally keep chickens from flying.

Wing clipping prevents chickens from flying

In backyard chicken farming, wing clipping is commonly used to prevent chickens from escaping their fenced area. With clipped wings, chickens struggle or fail to fly.

"​Clipping chicken wing​" by ​Mark Robinson​ is licensed under ​CC BY 2.0​.

When done correctly, this practice is painless for the chicken, but it can result in falls due to balance issues and psychological distress.

While wing clipping is common in the United States, it is generally avoided in European countries, where it is considered a form of animal cruelty. Wing clipping is also less common in factory farming as chickens typically have no risk of escaping due to being contained in packed chicken houses or cages.

Forced molting decreases the feather area of hens

As hens age, their egg production naturally slows down. In the United States, it's common to increase production by intentionally starving or feeding the hen low-nutrient food for up to two weeks. This process causes the hen to shed their feathers (known as molting) and lose up to 30% of their body fat. When the hens' diet returns to normal, it stimulates a final surge in egg production that results in larger, more profitable eggs before the hens are slaughtered.

Hens undergoing forced molting in their final stage of life.
"​Animal Abuse Battery Cage 01​" by Compassion Over Killing is licensed under ​CC BY-SA 3.0​.

The reduced feather coverage caused by forced molting makes flight nearly impossible for these older hens. Although this practice is banned in the European Union for animal welfare reasons, it remains legal in the United States.

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Sources

Burgess, R. (2023, October 23). Can Chickens Fly?. Dalton. https://www.daltonsupplies.com/blogs/news/can-chickens-fly

Custom Cages. (2021, March 30). Wing Clipping, Bird Information | Custom Cages. Custom Cages. https://www.customcages.com/wing-clipping.html

Damerow, G. (2021, February 26). How to Clip a Chicken’s Wing Feathers. Cackle Hatchery. https://www.cacklehatchery.com/how-to-clip-a-chickens-wing-feathers/

Damerow, G. (2022, October 11). Why Can’t Chickens Fly? Cackle Hatchery. https://www.cacklehatchery.com/why-cant-chickens-fly/

Geggel, L. (2016, December 8). Forget About the Road. Why Are Chickens So Bad at Flying?. LiveScience. https://www.livescience.com/57139-why-chickens-cannot-fly.html

Husain, E. (2024, August 2). Can chickens fly? They might not be as grounded as you think. Discover Wildlife. https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/birds/can-chickens-fly

Lehr, A. (2024, March 27). Can Chickens Fly?. Grubbly Farms. https://grubblyfarms.com/blogs/the-flyer/can-chickens-fly

MSPCA-Angell. (2024, October 24). Farmed Animal Welfare: Chickens. MSPCA. https://www.mspca.org/animal_protection/farm-animal-welfare-chickens/

National Chicken Council. (2021, December 20). Per Capita Consumption of Poultry and Livestock, 1965 to Forecast 2022, in Pounds. National Chicken Council. https://www.nationalchickencouncil.org/about-the-industry/statistics/per-capita-consumption-of-poultry-and-livestock-1965-to-estimated-2012-in-pounds/

Zuidhof, M. J., Schneider, B. L., Carney, V. L., Korver, D. R., & Robinson, F. E. (2014). Growth, efficiency, and yield of commercial broilers from 1957, 1978, and 2005. Poultry Science, 93(12), 2970–2982. https://doi.org/10.3382/ps.2014-04291