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He looks blue wheaten to me, too.

I was hoping someone else would comment on these chicks. They do not look like any Blue Coppers I've ever hatched. I highly suspect they are mixed breed. That all copper head at such a young age, the coloring on the wings, even the head shape...something just doesn't look "Maran-ish" to me. I...

He is a mature bird now, so he is not going to get more color. He is just a dark one. Very pretty, though, I like his body type.

Where have you been getting them from, a hatchery? Because if so, I wouldn't expect decent stock regardless of price. Also Blue Coppers generally would be more expensive if you are just getting the blue color since they don't breed true. At least that's what I would think, 50% of the hatch is...

I find eye color to be one of the more frustrating traits to work on because it can take so long for them to change! Especially the pullets, waiting until almost lay before you know they aren't going to change.

In my experience, there will still be a percentage of darker eyed birds after breeding to a bird with correct colored eyes. Yes the eyes are correct on some but not 100% in the first generation.

That may be line related because I have several---not exactly sure how many--Blue Copper hens with nice bay colored eyes but not a bit of copper. I have only one pullet this year that has copper approaching what I want. And a couple that has small amounts of copper. Having an old timer poultry...

From what I have read other people say and from my own experience, Marans tend to lay in cycles. Lay good for a while, take a break, start up again. Sounds like yours are taking a break.

Edging is when there is a narrow border or lacing of contrasting color around the feather web. In the photo, the feathers appear very dark blue with a darker blue or black edge around them. If they were Black Copper, the feathers would be solid black and you would not see that outline.

Well I know which BCM male NOT to use over my blues! I think next matings I will make several different pairings. This spring I only had 3 BCM males to choose from, and one of those got sick so he didn't sire many, and the third one I didn't use over my blues. This is the sire of all those, on...

So do you think all those Blue Copper cockerels I posted should go in the freezer? I am doing a butcher run tomorrow, trying to figure out which all to include. If all the blues go, then it's one more season of breeding black to blue. Am I ever going to get to breed blue to blue

OK Don, here is another option I have to breed to some select blue copper females. This black #9 came from a black to blue mating. He was hatched 3/23. He has no white undercolor, no white in tail or wings. He has good size, could use a bit more rounded breast I think, but tail angle looks good...

Yes, he is wide all the way to the hip bones, very slightly narrowing after that but not much.

I guess that is a reason to try to use at least one of these young Blue Copper cockerels. The best one, which came from a different sire, was the one I culled because of his horrible twisted comb. Guess I should have kept him. But I didn't get many offspring from that sire (he was also pure BC)...

Yes Don, they all have white under color. I have some Black Coppers that do not and used one to breed most of my Black and Blue Copper females this year but am still getting the white on the Blues. All the pullets have it, too. I just don't know how to get rid of it. So yes, they all have faults...

Here's the last one, #91. He is one week older than the other two, hatched 3/30. He would have been culled last year, but I kept hearing people say to use an overly colored male to get color on the pullets. So I kept him, but now he appear to be developing a squirrel tail, and to me he is...

Here is cockerel #13. He was also hatched 4/6, so same age as #83 in previous post. This one has some breast copper color but not a huge amount. He doesn't have any solid white wing feathers, but a lot of the wing feathers are speckled with white, like white pepper was sprinkled on them. Also a...

Don, I brought the 4 Blue Coppers I have left over to some pens in the shade this afternoon and took photos of 3 of them. One I will cull for sure so didn't photograph him. I would like to know if you think any of these are useful. I have dozens of Blue Copper pullets and hen to choose from and...

Don you remind me of a soap opera...to be continued...keeping us all waiting just kidding. So I do not have any splash Marans since I have been having trouble getting a Blue Copper male I felt was worthy of breeding. I have just been breeding a BC male to my blue c. females. I will try to get...

But what if they ALL have it?? I like my line otherwise and do not want to add from someone else's birds, I've had too many problems doing that. I guess I can try to "grade" the white fluff, but it is hard to look at them and say one has more than another.