Dating back to 1624, Coq de Leon, or the "rooster of Leon" is the oldest line of birds bred for their feathers.
There are two distict lines. "Pardo" or the brown line is a larger bird and the feathers are marked with fine speckling. The other is refered to in the literature as "indio", or indian line. The feathers are grey, or steel color, and lack the speckling
Whiting Farms is the only breeder of Coq de Leon with original bird stock from the Leon district of Spain.