Update: 6 1/2 weeks old now - still up in the air? pullets or cockerels?

[16 and me]

Back again! The dark Blue Copper Marans is almost certainly a cockerel - He's huge! Way bigger than all the other chicks, even bigger than the light blue copper marans - which I'm still undecided on - perhaps some expert eyes can see better? The Barreds are also hard for me to tell.

Stella - The barred with more striping seems a little more likely to me to be a pullet. Bella - the one with less striping is more iffy...

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[Tookie]

I believe the only female is Stella.

 

[NatJ]

I believe the only female is Stella.

I think Stella and Bella both look like females.

Both Blue Copper Marans look like males to me too.

 

[Tookie]

I think Stella and Bella both look like females.

Both Blue Copper Marans look like males to me too.

Oh I somehow missed Bella. But yes I agree she’s a girl too.

 

[16 and me]

I think Stella and Bella both look like females.

Both Blue Copper Marans look like males to me too.

Thank you! I am glad to have the pair of Barred's both be female. I do absolutely love the colouring of that light Blue Copper Marans - it would make such a lovely hen! So I either cull both of the 12 week old male EE crosses (1 was already going to have to go) and keep the light BCM, Or keep my original pick and cull these 2 if they are both males. Oh what to do...
The benefit of keeping the BCM is fresh genes in the pool - the EE is offspring of my Roo. But he is so chill - like his papa..

 

[16 and me]

Oh I somehow missed Bella. But yes I agree she’s a girl too.

Thanks Tookie!

 

[16 and me]

Someone just responded on my previous thread that a the female Barred's have dark shading in their legs, like these 2 do, and the males are usually lighter. So I think we are sold on the Barred's being pullets!
So I guess I can't complain about 4 pullets out of 6. 1st brood was 1/6 2nd: 2/4 and now 4/6. Ratio's are improving!

 

[NatJ]

Someone just responded on my previous thread that a the female Barred's have dark shading in their legs, like these 2 do, and the males are usually lighter. So I think we are sold on the Barred's being pullets!

This is true for pure Barred Rocks and Cuckoo Marans and various other ones. It is because males have two copies of the barring gene and females have only one copy of the barring gene. (Barring is on the Z sex chromosome. Males are ZZ, females are ZW.)

But if you have a mixed breed chicken, with one barred parent and one not-barred parent, then you get males that also have the darker coloring (because they have just one copy of the barring gene.) Common examples would be some Olive Eggers, and the males of Black Sexlinks.

So I guess I can't complain about 4 pullets out of 6. 1st brood was 1/6 2nd: 2/4 and now 4/6. Ratio's are improving!

Yes, this is definitely better

 

[16 and me]

This is true for pure Barred Rocks and Cuckoo Marans and various other ones. It is because males have two copies of the barring gene and females have only one copy of the barring gene. (Barring is on the Z sex chromosome. Males are ZZ, females are ZW.)

But if you have a mixed breed chicken, with one barred parent and one not-barred parent, then you get males that also have the darker coloring (because they have just one copy of the barring gene.) Common examples would be some Olive Eggers, and the males of Black Sexlinks.


Yes, this is definitely better

These barreds, along with the BCM were from Murray McMurray, after my broody only hatched 1 of her 6 eggs. It was fortunate timing that the day old chicks were being picked up by a local farm in time to place under my broody with her 1 backyard mix. I suspect they are pure, but I'm not familiar with McMurray's chicks - this was my first time buying hatchery chicks.

 

[NatJ]

These barreds, along with the BCM were from Murray McMurray, after my broody only hatched 1 of her 6 eggs. It was fortunate timing that the day old chicks were being picked up by a local farm in time to place under my broody with her 1 backyard mix. I suspect they are pure, but I'm not familiar with McMurray's chicks - this was my first time buying hatchery chicks.

If McMurray sold them as Barred Rocks, then yes the color-sexing should work fine on them.

I just didn't want anyone to get mixed up and think it should work on all barred birds, and then have an unpleasant surprise when a dark barred chick that is a mix turns out to be a male.