Is this pullet or cockerel behavior?

[WinterLadyAK]

There are a few silkies in my flock of 11 week olds that I can't tell the sex of yet. The only one of my white ones that doesn't show any streamers yet (and I'm really hoping is a pullet

) was pecking a little silkie cockerel (currently the only one crowing, so the dominant one) when he comes near her food. I'm wondering if this might be pullet-like behavior? Do hens typically peck the neck and maybe a short shot at the behind of the dominant cockerel? Or is that more likely to be cockerel-like behavior to peck at another cockerel competing for food? The pecking didn't seem like when the pullets peck each other, mine don't normally seem to go for the neck when it's a pecking-order type of pecking. It's not vicious and hasn't drawn blood, just wondering if I can tell anything from this behavior, and couldn't find any other posts addressing this (searches didn't bring up anything on this specific topic). Maybe it's just chicken behavior, but in some small corner of my brain I remember reading somewhere that hens would do this to roosters, or maybe that's just me really hoping she's a she.

Thanks!

 

[nurse_turtle]

Sounds more like chick behavior. Cockerels and roosters aren't always head of the flock. I have 3 large hens that are the gang bosses of my flock. The pecking order begins to be established quite early. Rarely can one say that a certain behavior if hen-ish or roo-ish in young chickens.

 

[WinterLadyAK]

Sounds more like chick behavior. Cockerels and roosters aren't always head of the flock. I have 3 large hens that are the gang bosses of my flock. The pecking order begins to be established quite early. Rarely can one say that a certain behavior if hen-ish or roo-ish in young chickens.

This particular chicken is in the middle to bottom of the pecking order, and the pecking order has been established for quite a while, they've all been together for 11 weeks. I find that the cockerel gets largely ignored in the pecking order, or seems to be outside it, so I thought this new behavior (first time I've witnessed it) might mean something about sex.