Off-color Bielefelder??

[rkelly1272]

I got my first batch of straight-run dual-purpose breed chicks from Sandhill Preservation Center in mid-April, and the order included 7 Bielefelders. As an autosexing breed, I thought it would be easy to tell the males and females apart. There were four obvious cockerels and three pullets--I thought! Now at 12 weeks old, one that I thought was a pullet with less distinct "chipmunk" stripes and no white head spot as a baby seems to be maturing into a beautifully colored but not very Bielefelder-looking cockerel that lacks the typical barred crele color. (Hopefully I'm using these terms correctly!) The big red comb and developing sickle feathers in the tail indicates male, but there's not much male behavior at all with no crowing or fighting that I've seen.

If anyone has any ideas what breed/sex he/she is, I'd appreciate the info! Here's some pics.

At 1 week old from the side and from above:

At 3 weeks old (the first to develop a comb, and it was pink very early):

At 12 weeks old (lacks the distinct barring seen in the other Bielefelders but beautiful coloration!):

 

[Saveria]

Welcome to BYC.

That is interesting, that chick does look male except for the weak eye stripe. I haven't seen that before. Did you call the hatchery? They may have a couple of issues with their breeding program, or don't care about what is standard for the breed. He sure is beautiful, though!

 

[ShrekDawg]

Definitely a cockerel. Not sure on the rest though.

 

[BastyPutt]

This is something that we have seen a few times here in BYC in the last few months, mainly with crested cream legbars though. It is quite the mystery. And the CCL should be substantially different between the M/F as a chick.

But, it is safe to say that there was a distinct difference in the chicks on these other threads - with what turned out to be the males, having the same pattern as the females, but lighter in color.

 

[JedJackson]

Definitely a cockerel. His color doesn't fit the standard but he is very handsome. I wouldn't use him to breed more Bielefelders since he likely won't produce chicks that are easily autosexed, and that is kind of the point of the breed. But he'd still make a fine rooster in a mixed flock.

 

[rkelly1272]

This is something that we have seen a few times here in BYC in the last few months, mainly with crested cream legbars though. It is quite the mystery. And the CCL should be substantially different between the M/F as a chick.

But, it is safe to say that there was a distinct difference in the chicks on these other threads - with what turned out to be the males, having the same pattern as the females, but lighter in color.

Interesting! I wonder if the CCLs were from Sandhill or if this is an occasional color difference that crops up in autosexing breeds.

We also ended up with a pullet with non-standard Bielefelder color as well. She is more partridge without the barring, so something may be up with Sandhill's breeding program, or there was a mix-up with the chicks. They all grew similarly, though, and are about the same size and temperament, so I suspect it may be some aspect of the Bielefelder gene pool. As I understand it, there were so few birds imported to the US that there's a lot of inbreeding.

Here's the pullet:

 

[rkelly1272]

Definitely a cockerel. His color doesn't fit the standard but he is very handsome. I wouldn't use him to breed more Bielefelders since he likely won't produce chicks that are easily autosexed, and that is kind of the point of the breed. But he'd still make a fine rooster in a mixed flock.

Yes, we're considering keeping him since he matured rapidly and has a wonderful calm and friendly attitude. We're really enjoying exploring different breeds but are also just aiming for a self-sustaining homestead flock. Since we only ended up with two Bielefelder pullets, and one of those is also a non-standard color, we don't have the makings of a serious breeding program. We might just see what we end up if we breed him to the other two, since they all seem like good dual-purpose birds.

 

[ElimAcres]

Interesting! I wonder if the CCLs were from Sandhill or if this is an occasional color difference that crops up in autosexing breeds.

We also ended up with a pullet with non-standard Bielefelder color as well. She is more partridge without the barring, so something may be up with Sandhill's breeding program, or there was a mix-up with the chicks. They all grew similarly, though, and are about the same size and temperament, so I suspect it may be some aspect of the Bielefelder gene pool. As I understand it, there were so few birds imported to the US that there's a lot of inbreeding.

Here's the pullet:
View attachment 3565613

I've had several pullets of this type coloring hatch from my small flock this year. I am selling them instead of keeping for my breeding program since the coloring is undesirable.

 

[allgr8dogs]

I got my first batch of straight-run dual-purpose breed chicks from Sandhill Preservation Center in mid-April, and the order included 7 Bielefelders. As an autosexing breed, I thought it would be easy to tell the males and females apart. There were four obvious cockerels and three pullets--I thought! Now at 12 weeks old, one that I thought was a pullet with less distinct "chipmunk" stripes and no white head spot as a baby seems to be maturing into a beautifully colored but not very Bielefelder-looking cockerel that lacks the typical barred crele color. (Hopefully I'm using these terms correctly!) The big red comb and developing sickle feathers in the tail indicates male, but there's not much male behavior at all with no crowing or fighting that I've seen.

If anyone has any ideas what breed/sex he/she is, I'd appreciate the info! Here's some pics.

At 1 week old from the side and from above:
View attachment 3565117 View attachment 3565118
At 3 weeks old (the first to develop a comb, and it was pink very early):
View attachment 3565122
At 12 weeks old (lacks the distinct barring seen in the other Bielefelders but beautiful coloration!):
View attachment 3565123 View attachment 3565124

 

[allgr8dogs]

Def doesn't look like a Bielefelder to me. I order 25 straight run Bielefelders from Sandhill Preservation (got 17 cockerels). This is the rooster I kept. His name is Pretty Boy.