Can Black Sex Link Pullet be totally black?

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Could be a Sex-link still but let me ask you, does she has a Straight Comb, Rose Comb or a Pea Comb?

Chris

I'm not sure, her comb is quite small as you can see in the photo. I've been researching combs since I read your post, but don't feel confident as yet. Tomorrow I'll take a better picture if I can and I'll post it. Maybe you, or someone, can tell us.
 
my first thought was sumatra.something about the tail.
they are rare but hatcheries do carry them-i know you got her locally but they could have gotten theirs from there.
waiting for the comb pics
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Quote:
No idea what anyone else has replied yet......but yes BSL pullets/hens can be solid black. I know the parents of ours ( we bred them ourselves) and out of our first 6 ever 3 are solid black with that green iridescent shine. The other three vary from red & black to red & gold with varying amounts. The red started showing up at around 10 weeks on two, and sooner on the other one.

Out of our ~30 hatched last month, I cannot tell you how many are solid black, but we do have some solids in those too.

Also, with our BSLs, some of the pullets do have a reddish face at hatch
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So cute! and they usually get red on them as they age also.
 
Hatchery-quality Sumatras typically have a more red face, peach feet soles and poor tail carriage.

That is not a BA...they are usually larger, fluffier birds. My MIL has BA's from IDEAL and they are completely different in shape from your girl.

How well does your hen fly? BA's can fly a little but Sumatras can easily go 6+ feet off the ground....

Looks like a hatchery Sumatra to me....her comb is a little too red & large...and her feet look peach on the bottoms? (They should be bright yellow.)

What color are her earlobes?

Most modern day Sumatras have yellow skin, not black. A few of the older strains do have the black skin.

For comparison--here are a few pics of my Sumatra hens....some are in molt and not looking very good but you can get the idea.
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sumatrahen3-1.jpg


Yellow feet:

DSCN4023-1.jpg


Face shot:

DSCN4314-1.jpg


Some more pics:

DSCN4313-1.jpg


DSCN4312.jpg


Pullet:

SumatraHen2.jpg


Overall, Sumatras are awesome birds. They are friendly, smart, lay well (even in 90+ degree heat)! They are cold & heat hardy, make good mothers and the roosters are so pretty.
big_smile.png


DSCN4315-1.jpg
 
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My youngest BSL pullets are mostly black with the greenish sheen.
One has a slight sprinkling of red feathers on her breast from her RIR daddy, the other is Brown Leghorn x Barred Rock and she's almost solid black with white earlobes.

Last fall I had two Buff Orpington x Barred Rock BSL girls and they matured to almost half buff, but these younger two are 98% black. They just started laying, I suppose they might change a little more with time, but they're almost grown.

One of the black November BSL pullets from about a month ago (game cam picture, so sorry her head isn't in it, lol)
HUNT1132.JPG
 
Sumatras can be gotten at most hatcheries,I bought 2 hens couple years ago at a small animal auction.My first thought also was Sumatra.
In fact I gave my niece some Sumatra chicks I got from Sandhill hatchery in my assortment.
 
Rare Feathers Farm,

I was think the something as in that it is a Hatchery Quality Sumatras and that is why I was asking about the comb type of the OP's bird in question.

Chris
 
This is a 2010 BSL hen which is solid black. She is a TSC chick. BTW, this picture makes her look like a broody on steroids, but she's very mild mannered; it's just the camera angle:

 
Wow, I wouldn't have guessed my original question was going to get this involved. It just goes to show how little I know and how much more I have yet to learn! Thank you ALL so much for helping me!!

So this morning, with the help of my hubby, I took several more pictures. I'd say the colors in the pics look pretty true. In answer to Rare Feathers Farm, the first 3 are feet.
I notice my pullet seems to have fluffier hocks(?) than their Sumatras, am I right?

91328_p1060550.jpg




Would you call her feet bright yellow?

91328_p1060559.jpg


91328_p1060564.jpg





The next 2 pics are my attempt at figuring out her earlobes. I'm really embarassed to say I don't even know if I found them! Please tell me which, if either, of these pics show her earlobes, ok? And can you tell what color they are???
hu.gif


91328_p1060562.jpg


91328_p1060563.jpg





Her comb seems very small to me. But I think it's straight rather than pea or rose. The Sumatras at Rare Feathers don't seem to have any comb at all. Is that because they are more "pure" / less domestic (I don't know the right terms) than a hatchery version?

91328_p1060560.jpg





She's grown some from the original photo I posted. I see the resemblance in the tail. Does this help any?

91328_p1060549.jpg





Regarding flight.... we just put a tree branch into the run a couple days ago, it's 3' above the ground. I sat her on it a few times and she's jumped/flown down but I haven't seen her fly up to it. My hubby caught sight of her sitting up there this morning, but that's the first time she's gone up there by herself that we know of. The run is only 6' high and pretty narrow, so she doesn't have much room to fly.


Overall, Sumatras are awesome birds. They are friendly, smart, lay well (even in 90+ degree heat)! They are cold & heat hardy, make good mothers and the roosters are so pretty. big_smile

I'm glad to hear they lay well, the info. I saw said 1 egg per week. That's just the opposite of why I was trying to get a BSL. I only have room for 2-3 hens, and really want good layers. She's eats from our hand and is easy to catch and hold. She has a very good temperament, far better than the Ameraucana (oops, she's an Easter Egger) whose very skittish. I don't want to get attached and then find out I have to "trade her in for a different model".

Thanks again everyone, this is fascinating!​
 
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I really dont think she is a sumatra. The feet feathers and comb doesnt match up to the pictures. On the other hand she doesnt look as fluffy as the australorp pullet i used to have. I have one hen now that is almost identical to yours but she is an easter egger with very small muffs. Is it possible that your chicken could be an easter egger with no muffs??? Just another idea.
If not, then i would say she is a solid black, black sex-link...
 

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