Blue Copper and Splash Copper Marans Discussion

[Chickenman76]

Hi!

Either way...male or female, it really does not matter as the crossings will still produce the colors stated provided enough eggs are set.

However, I will say that it is suggested by many breeders to use the male of color that you are wanting to produce.

I have found that I don't always get the color ratio results as predicted when I set a smaller number of eggs from my blue to blue matings. Seems like when I am seriously wanting a particular color of chick to hatch, like some splash babies ......it doesn't happen and all I get is blue or black, but other times, I will get the majority splash and maybe one or two blues. LOL!
Good thing those silly hens keep on laying so we can keep on trying, right?

Thank you

.You have been more than helpful. So I'd be better off hatching a lot of the blue on blue to get splash, thats my goal. I love the Splash Marans

. Now I have to come up with a blue male. So far this year out of 3 sets of hatching eggs of 42 per bated. I've only hatched 1 roo, and twice of hatching it was 99% hatch rate

The 3rd hatch was about a 85% hatch rate. Unfortunately they wasn't Marans, I have them in the Bator now

. Hope they do as well

 

[pinkchick]

Kim, I will be in that brooder pen tomorrow and will get a picture of the blue male. He is about seven weeks old. He has the white legs. Very good looking Marans even if he is odd colored. With the Marans I do not believe the genetic formulas will work , with all the out of breed crossing going on.

White legs are good!
Got some more info for you and putting my words together now.

I think that you are going to be happy.

 

[pinkchick]

Don~
What color where the other chicks that hatched? Were they a light yellowish color? Did any of them have any colored spots near the head or on the body, like a black color? Dominant white can produce chicks that wil/canl show some leakage of another color as a chick or as it matures. I understand it is most often black as it does not cover black completely, so an odd feather might appear, but if the bird has other colors the dom. white is trying to cover, such as red, it can show the red pyle look in the shoulders in adult plumage.

Recessive white is also leaky considering gold and red. It will allow some yellowing of the hackle, wing bow and saddle area on males usually after adult molt.

I am understanding that White Marans are thought to be recessive white, but there are also some that are dominant white. They can carry both..but I understand that only one expresses.

Recessive white can produce grayish-blueish-silvery looking chicks. These chicks are said to be based on the silver gene and they are also said to mature out to a nicer cleaner white.

It is said to get the best and cleanest white birds, use birds that are homozygous for both dominant white and recessive white based on silver.....this should help with the yellowing in the adult birds. White birds built on Columbian, Silver Cuckoo and pure Black Birchen are said to produce the best white and a good foundation for White Marans stock. However, I believe that the Birchen and possibly the Cuckoo will not help in the white leg color deptartment for females because of sexlinked genes.
The white legged male will pass his white leg genes onto all of his offspring, I am unsure how it expresses in the females.....I believe they get one copy of the gene and they will have dark legs, but having that one copy, I think and could be very wrong, but I believe that you would breed those female offspring back to their father to get more white in the next generation. Keep all white legs and eliminate all blueish or slate legged birds.


What do the other chicks look like now at 7 weeks of age? Do you have any females?
What color are the other chicks legs?



There was something else I was going to ad but I can't remember now what it was......when it comes back to me (and hopefully it does) I will edit.

 

[pinkchick]

Vicki~

Here is that young Blue that came to me from Texas that I would have swore was going to be barred....must have been some SERIOUS ghost barring.

She is a Blue Copper. She has some wonderful edging coming on. She also is going to have a great copper hackle, I am sure of it.
Her very dark Mulberry colored face is also disappearing very fast.

The second photo doesn't show it very well but she has copper coming in all the way around the collar.

 

[pinkchick]

Oh and Vicki.......I don't remember if I told you are not yesterday via text message but all of the those Blue Copper chicks are now getting copper.
Can't they grow up faster?!?!?!


Also, still no signs of my special little #31 pullet from that hatch. No clue what happened to her. Let them out one morning and did a head count as they ran out the door....all seven were accounted for. Came back into the house for a while to work on the walk in tile shower I am building and when I went back out approx. 4 hours later to do chores, she was gone. I am wondering if it was a bird of prey of some sort. Do California Condors swoop and attack or do they only scavenge carion?
Lots of California Condors were released in Washington and I have been seeing them fly over on a daily basis now for about 2 weeks...... maybe circling is a better word, not flying.
But anyway, they are the only thing that has been around....besides one of my neighbors morning doves that like to perch in my Alder trees above the coops and coo all day until they see an opportunity to come down into the commons grassy area to peck the rest of the treats up that the geese and chickens didn't get to.

 

[snowbird]

Don~
What color where the other chicks that hatched? Were they a light yellowish color? Did any of them have any colored spots near the head or on the body, like a black color? Dominant white can produce chicks that wil/canl show some leakage of another color as a chick or as it matures. I understand it is most often black as it does not cover black completely, so an odd feather might appear, but if the bird has other colors the dom. white is trying to cover, such as red, it can show the red pyle look in the shoulders in adult plumage.

Recessive white is also leaky considering gold and red. It will allow some yellowing of the hackle, wing bow and saddle area on males usually after adult molt.

I am understanding that White Marans are thought to be recessive white, but there are also some that are dominant white. They can carry both..but I understand that only one expresses.

Recessive white can produce grayish-blueish-silvery looking chicks. These chicks are said to be based on the silver gene and they are also said to mature out to a nicer cleaner white.

It is said to get the best and cleanest white birds, use birds that are homozygous for both dominant white and recessive white based on silver.....this should help with the yellowing in the adult birds. White birds built on Columbian, Silver Cuckoo and pure Black Birchen are said to produce the best white and a good foundation for White Marans stock. However, I believe that the Birchen and possibly the Cuckoo will not help in the white leg color deptartment for females because of sexlinked genes.
The white legged male will pass his white leg genes onto all of his offspring, I am unsure how it expresses in the females.....I believe they get one copy of the gene and they will have dark legs, but having that one copy, I think and could be very wrong, but I believe that you would breed those female offspring back to their father to get more white in the next generation. Keep all white legs and eliminate all blueish or slate legged birds.


What do the other chicks look like now at 7 weeks of age? Do you have any females?
What color are the other chicks legs?



There was something else I was going to ad but I can't remember now what it was......when it comes back to me (and hopefully it does) I will edit.

Kim, There were a dozen eggs and five chicks hatched and all five have white legs. When this male first hatched I thought he would eventually feather out to be white, well that is not going to happen. Soon as it stops raining will get you a picture.
In the fall will be working on the columbian colored Marans using a light Sussex cross for the first pairing.

 

[pinkchick]

White legs on all of them is a good thing!

What color where the other chicks at hatch?


I can't wait to see him.........when I do will I understand why you believe he will not mature out to white?

 

[snowbird]

White legs on all of them is a good thing!

What color where the other chicks at hatch?


I can't wait to see him.........when I do will I understand why you believe he will not mature out to white?

Kim, The other four chicks are white Pure. The reason I say he will not be white is because he is feathered out to be some kind of blue.

 

[gilavina]

Oh and Vicki.......I don't remember if I told you are not yesterday via text message but all of the those Blue Copper chicks are now getting copper.

Can't they grow up faster?!?!?!


Also, still no signs of my special little #31 pullet from that hatch. No clue what happened to her. Let them out one morning and did a head count as they ran out the door....all seven were accounted for. Came back into the house for a while to work on the walk in tile shower I am building and when I went back out approx. 4 hours later to do chores, she was gone. I am wondering if it was a bird of prey of some sort. Do California Condors swoop and attack or do they only scavenge carion?
Lots of California Condors were released in Washington and I have been seeing them fly over on a daily basis now for about 2 weeks...... maybe circling is a better word, not flying.
But anyway, they are the only thing that has been around....besides one of my neighbors morning doves that like to perch in my Alder trees above the coops and coo all day until they see an opportunity to come down into the commons grassy area to peck the rest of the treats up that the geese and chickens didn't get to.

Too bad that little pullet hasn't shown back up. I always hate losing birds, and they usually seem to be the ones that are the best or have the most attachment to. I'm happy to be hearing you are seeing copper on your chicks! I knew it was going to less of a fight than one would think. Its just a matter of selecting the right birds to mate to allow the copper to come thru. I bet if you can keep shooting for that tone of blue in those chicks you will see more and more with copper.

I have to sort both batches of chicks today, that's gonna be a long process, but needs to be done. I held off putting in this last batch of eggs til we get past this round of bad weather. The power goes on and off at night when its storming, so would rather just wait. Granted, I'd rather not do a hatch this late, but I got a really late start this year.

I'm still working on getting everything sorted here as far as building new pens and getting the rest of the garden in. With all the rain, I've been able to do mostly planning on paper and working inside. Hopefully things will let up soon so that things can return to normal and can get some work done.

 

[DMRippy]

White legs on all of them is a good thing!


What color where the other chicks at hatch?



I can't wait to see him.........when I do will I understand why you believe he will not mature out to white?

Kim, The other four chicks are white Pure. The reason I say he will not be white is because he is feathered out to be some kind of blue.

I have not been following this closely but if this is the one you think might be lavender and it has white legs.....that is odd. My lavender ams have slate legs. Only the white ams have lighter legs.....more blueish/gray color.