Disappointed... well, not really....

Thank you Backyard Chickens first and foremost for creating and providing this website as a tool for us all! I have learned a tremendous amount of information here and feel the site is priceless to bird owners!

Secondly, I have come into some information that has me doubting the breed of birds I acquired back in the summer. All the birds pictured were born this spring and have been laying eggs for a couple of months now. Of the five birds pictured, I'm 100% certain I have a barred rock, welsummer and cinnamon queen x white rock. What I'm afraid of is the remaining two birds which I thought up until recently were a black copper marans and blue copper marans. However, I have since questioned the identity of these two birds and believe them to possibly be a Black Australorp and Blue Cochin, and not the marans I thought I was getting. Again, they have been laying for a month or so now producing eggs daily and I only have one deep chocolate egg in the nexting box each day.... Can someone familiar enough with these two breeds provide feedback on any identifying traits that would determine the breed. Either way, I guess Im ok with it, but I sure was set on black and blue marans. the BA is a super sweet girl and I wouldnt trade her for nothing, but the blue is not so nice so she could be up for adoption.

Thank you all for the help!!

The black hen is not a Black Australorp, that I can tell you. As for the others, someone else will know but I know BAs and that ain't one.

No copper on neither bird btw, and the solid black has a green hue on her feathers which is partly why I suspect BA.

They look like Marans to me. Not all lines lay really dark brown eggs. That's something that a lot of hatcheries and breeders are still working on. Most black birds will have a green sheen, it's not breed specific. Marans do come in solid black or solid blue, and both clean legged and feather legged.

I would say you do have two Marans; they both have Marans-y type. The Blue looks like a French strain, and it's got potential to either be a plain old Blue or a Blue Copper lacking copper (seen it before). Black one is a bit less typey, looks American strain, lack of copper could mean same as the other - Black or BC lacking Copper. Hathery Marans can easily produce non-dark eggs, since hatcheries don't care too much about standard.

junebuggena said:

They look like Marans to me. Not all lines lay really dark brown eggs. That's something that a lot of hatcheries and breeders are still working on. Most black birds will have a green sheen, it's not breed specific. Marans do come in solid black or solid blue, and both clean legged and feather legged.

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I agree.

Please elaborate. I see the same features in my bird that I see on many google images for BA's. Thank you.

Black Australorps have really dark eyes. Like this.

And nice, short combs....yours is standing up like a hatchery leghorn! Take about half that comb off and it would look more like a BA.

The hen in the front of this group is a BA...note the different width of fan on the tail and the small, tidy comb and wattles? A BA shouldn't have any copper/red/brown tones in her top feathering at all...just a green/purple sheen in the sunlight and maybe just a little chocolate brown undertones over the shanks at certain times of year.



Here's one again...



And TWO BAs.....



Pics

of Black Copper Maran

1luckyfisherman said:

Please elaborate. I see the same features in my bird that I see on many google images for BA's. Thank you.

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x2 on what everyone else said. BAs have dark eyes, little combs, and a very different body shape. Australorps are a stocky fluffy bird, hence the name - Australian Orpingtons. Marans are a bit skinnier with a different back and tail, and a big ol wibbly wobbly ugly comb. Plus of course French styles have the light leg feathering.