Starting to think ahead to get coloured eggs!

[PouleChick]

Hi, first time I've posted in here so please be gentle while I get my head around it all! I have hatched Araucana eggs, I've got a pullet and a cockerel for blue eggs and 8 cream legbars are going under broodies tommorrow. I also have various light brown and white breeds and some Marans (at least one cockerel, not sure about the other yet - but about to put 4 more under a broody). I have read up on the genetics and this is what I have in my head (please do tell me if I'm wrong!):
blue x white = pale blue
blue x light brown = various shades of green that you won't know until they lay
blue x marans dark brown = Olive

So I think for the first lot I get how I can get my green shades but what happens the next generation? If I want to breed from an olive egger hen for example what will I get from a white roo, a brown roo, a blue roo? How do you get the quite bright almost aqua colour or is it all an unknown and you won't know until they lay?

Also I'm guessing I need to lock up certain hens with whichever roos - how long will they need to be apart from the flock (or is it easier just to lock the spare roo away in a different pen?)?

Also the guy I get some of my eggs from has said he has some Amerucana chicks that are a Dorking (with green eggs????) mixed with Araucana. Is this what in English / American would actually be an easter egger?? He said they will lay green eggs.

Thanks in advance for your time while I start toe dipping into the whole genetics thing!

 

[PouleChick]

sorry also am trying to decide what cockerels I want to keep, I think my Orp mix as he is lovely (so white or pale brown egg genes I'm guessing), and the Araucana purely for the blue genes but should I also consider keeping the Marans or is it OK just to use the Marans hens to get olive eggers?

 

[LilJoe]

You are correct on the crossings. If you cross your F1 olive egger to a dark egg layer the olive gets darker. But the more you cross back to the dark brown the higher the chances are your going to end up with a dark brown layer.
Same with crossing it back to blue. The more you cross back to the blue the higher the chances are your going to end up with a blue layer.

Same with crossing it back to blue.

 

[LilJoe]

Here are some charts:

 

[LilJoe]

sorry also am trying to decide what cockerels I want to keep, I think my Orp mix as he is lovely (so white or pale brown egg genes I'm guessing), and the Araucana purely for the blue genes but should I also consider keeping the Marans or is it OK just to use the Marans hens to get olive eggers?

I like to use Marans hens for Olive eggers (unless you want srxlinked ones.. then use legbar hens) because I like to use the darkest brown eggs possible.

 

[PouleChick]

Thanks so much for your help!

You are correct on the crossings

Phew!

If you cross your F1 olive egger to a dark egg layer the olive gets darker. But the more you cross back to the dark brown the higher the chances are your going to end up with a dark brown layer.

So to continue the darker olive colours I kind of need to keep a marans roo? Or not, is it more important to have the different colour genes in the hens?

Same with crossing it back to blue

Here are some charts:

Is there anyway you can post them so I can scroll in or link me to the source as I cna't make them bigger and can't read them properly (sorry over 40 and eyes are crap!!!)

I like to use Marans hens for Olive eggers (unless you want srxlinked ones.. then use legbar hens) because I like to use the darkest brown eggs possible.

I'll definately have at least 2 marans in the coop so hopefully that will work well - so for them I HAVE to keep the Araucana roo?

 

[PouleChick]

Hi again, just hoping someone can help with some of the other questions that probably got lost in my big post!

Also the guy I get some of my eggs from has said he has some Amerucana chicks that are a Dorking (with green eggs????) mixed with Araucana. Is this what in English / American would actually be an easter egger?? He said they will lay green eggs.

Also I'm guessing I need to lock up certain hens with whichever roos - how long will they need to be apart from the flock (or is it easier just to lock the spare roo away in a different pen?)?

should I also consider keeping the Marans or is it OK just to use the Marans hens to get olive eggers?

Thanks in advance

 

[Pork Pie]

These links may be interesting

Egg colour genetics

https://scratchcradle.wordpress.com/2012/07/01/gms1-genetics-of-egg-color/

https://scratchcradle.wordpress.com/2012/07/08/gms2-breeding-for-blue-eggs/

https://scratchcradle.wordpress.com/2012/07/15/gms3-breeding-for-other-egg-colors/