Because chickens can see ultraviolet light, they can detect the sun an hour earlier than humans.

So I figure my 'friend' from the forum (he of the witticism "Twenty chickens, all with names… Right") ...I figure he was thinking: all chickens are alike, how can you give them names- you couldn't tell them apart. Well here's mud in your eye, fella. It's pretty easy to tell one chicken from another if you get to know them… all human beings are nameless strangers who just seem alike too, until you get to know them. I have many different breeds and sizes of chickens, but even if you have more than one of the same breed, they have distinct personal traits and characteristics as individuals, which really, if given a chance, are quite obvious. For example...

This is Cleopatra (at right). She is a one year old Black Australorp hen. Her sister, Charlotte (see below) is also a Black Australorp, and of about the same age. But their personalities and physical appearance are not identical. Cleo, as one can see from the look in her eye, is very mild and almost shy. She loves lettuce but will only take small bits from my palm. She enjoys being picked up and held, and will even hop up on the gate when I'm nearby, to be closer so I'll pet her.  When a bird wants to get a good look at something, they cock their head and use one eye. Cleo often takes long looks at things, as if pondering.

This is Charlotte, Cleo's sister. Though of the same breed and age, they are like night and day. Where Cleo is shy and unassuming, Charlotte is much more bold and dominant. Her eyes are a different color, and she tends to not check out things as carefully as Cleo. Charlotte loves raisins and will even challenge Hope (see below) for more raisins. Unlike Cleo, Charlotte will rip big chunks of lettuce from the bunch as I hold it, not wanting to wait for me to break off little pieces like the more delicately mannered Cleo does. If you click either Cleo or Charlotte's pictures, you can see an enlargement of the two on the nest, side by side for comparison. It is not hard to tell them apart, even just visually.

This is Hope (far right). She is basically the Queen of all she surveys. The biggest of my birds, this Barred Rock hen is large and in charge, even bossing the dominant rooster Hannah. Yet, she is mild and gentle with me, and does not mind being picked up and fussed over. She loves to chase and catch flying insects, especially wasps, and her favorite treat is big plump raisins, which she will eat from my hand carefully. When I am raking leaves she is always nearby, waiting and watching as I uncover new grubs and other delights for her. 

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