A Heritage of Perfection: Standard-bred Large Fowl

[Yellow House Farm]

I've never heard that. Have you found it to be beneficial or a worthwhile target?

No, actually, I don't, but I find it holds a key notion, namely, that one has to hatch the amount necessary for one's strain to flush out enough birds to have something to pick from. By "to have something to pick from" I mean that when you look at a bird and it's a quick and obvious cull, it has no value at all save as soup. One needs multiple good/good-ish birds to line up and look at. You need to hatch enough birds to get your line up.

Now calling a spade a spade, Marans, Delawares, Dorkings, these are birds of generally low breeding in comparison to something like SQ Australorps, Leghorns, and RIRs. It's going to take hatching many more chicks to pull out those that actually move the flock forward.

With my Dorkings, I've tended to breed from the top 8% to 9%. I have to hatch a lot to get a few.

 

[Yellow House Farm]

What is eWh/eb heterozygotes?? Sounds like a formula code to hack into the new Wolfenstein game just released about 1 week ago..

OK very quick, very simple color genetics:

There are five "e", which is short for "ebony"; so there are five forms of "black". None of these refers to all black birds, like an Australorp. They refer to variations on the wild-pattern, which incorporates a balance of black and red. Consider the Light Leghorn. The male has a black breast, a black tail, and a black bar in the wing. This is more or less the wild-pattern. It is called "e+". The "e" means "black" and the "+" means "like wild birds".

So there are five recognized variations of the basic wild pattern "e+" in chickens, and all other colors come from these variations. Indeed, all colors in chickens are either "black" or "red" OR they are the dilution of black or red OR they are the blocking of pigment, which creates "no color" ergo "white".

The five "e", or "ebonies", are E, ER, e+, eb, eWh. Don't worry, it's easy:

E, which means "ebony or black", is Birchen without lacing in the breast--more or less. The capitalization of the E means that it is a dominant trait.

ER, which means "ebony restricted", is Birchen, like in a Birchen Modern Game Bantam or in a Brown Red Old English Game bantam. Just google image these and you'll see the pattern. Notice that the two have different colors but the same pattern. The "red" in the latter is replaced with "white" in the former. Cockers call this pattern "crow-wing"

e+ is the wild "duckwing" pattern. They call it "duckwing" because the wing bar resemble the blue speculum on a mallard duck. Check out Light Leghorns, BBR Old English Games, etc...

eb , which means "ebony brown", is Dark Brown. Check out Dark Brown Leghorns. The "brown" refers to the color of the females.

eWh is "ebony Wheaton". Think of Wheaton Old English Games and Cubalayas. The "wheaton" refers to the color of the females which is supposed to look like the color of wheat

Just check out some pictures, and it will be clear.

Now, every color that exists is developed from one of these original ebonies, and each of these ebonies has specific traits that it passes on to a color variety that is built on it. It's like a "catch" to the deal.

Of all the ebonies, eWh is the least black, and it relinquishes its blackness most readily. It just quits being black. On the other hand, eb clings to its blackness; it doesn't want to give up the black.

Light Sussex are a Columbian pattern built on a eWh base, which means that they give up the black. If you look at the under color of a Light Sussex, it is white.

Light Brahmas and Columbian Wyandottes are built on eb, which means that they don't give up the black easily. If you look at the under color of these birds, it is slate. Another complication with these birds is that the black wants to keep bleeding through to the surface color. Thus one sees Brahma males with black bleeding into the breast and back, and one doesn't see this with the Light Sussex.

So, do you need to know this stuff to breed chickens? No. Does it deepen your understanding of what's going on in the breeding pen? Yes. Can it potentially deepen your enjoyment of the process? Of course! The more you know about anything, the more its secrets speak to you.

 

[gjensen]

No, actually, I don't, but I find it holds a key notion, namely, that one has to hatch the amount necessary for one's strain to flush out enough birds to have something to pick from. By "to have something to pick from" I mean that when you look at a bird and it's a quick and obvious cull, it has no value at all save as soup. One needs multiple good/good-ish birds to line up and look at. You need to hatch enough birds to get your line up.

Now calling a spade a spade, Marans, Delawares, Dorkings, these are birds of generally low breeding in comparison to something like SQ Australorps, Leghorns, and RIRs. It's going to take hatching many more chicks to pull out those that actually move the flock forward.

With my Dorkings, I've tended to breed from the top 8% to 9%. I have to hatch a lot to get a few.

That is a good point. They are not all the same.

If I purchased some good birds from a recognized strain that was in good shape (and an easy color), I would have a different perspective than someone that was trying a more ground up type effort.

 

[3riverschick]

Now calling a spade a spade, Marans, Delawares, Dorkings, these are birds of generally low breeding in comparison to something like SQ Australorps, Leghorns, and RIRs. It's going to take hatching many more chicks to pull out those that actually move the flock forward.

Ernie Haire in Arp, TX at 2XL Marans http://marans2xl.com/ is one of those breeders who hatches enough Marans to establish and maintain a winning strain in several colors. Few like him. Ernie wins with superior breed type in top competition over multiple generations in multiple colors. He was also a national winner in Boer goats before he ever got into Marans. He sure knows how to breed a creature!
Best,
Karen

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Ernie Haire in Arp, TX at 2XL Marans http://marans2xl.com/ is one of those breeders who hatches enough Marans to establish and maintain a winning strain in several colors. Few like him. Ernie wins with superior breed type in top competition over multiple generations in multiple colors. He was also a national winner in Boer goats before he ever got into Marans. He sure knows how to breed a creature!
Best,
Karen

That would be interesting to see. Maybe they all live in Texas. I've never seen any Marans that were impressive in the Northeast or at the Ohio National. There have been some that looked stronger than weaker, though. They're going to suffer because of color, though. There are too many to do well whereas if they just focused on what they have they could become something interesting. Maybe folks up here will get good ones from Texas.

 

[3riverschick]

Ji,
They don't show any further north than OK. Would be great if they showed at the National in OH.
But they are all big shows. Bluebonnet in TX and Newnan are huge Marans entries. Newnan, GA is
the MCCUSA Marans National specialty. A win there is highly coveted and well deserved.
Best,
Karen

 

[denn1948]

These are Cackle Hatchery Colombian Rocks of mine. 12 weeks old tomorrow.

 

[fowlman01]

The only impressive Marans I have ever seen in person or online has been a drawing of one. There have been some class winners in weak classes, but that is about it.

Walt I Am

 

[Yellow House Farm]

The only impressive Marans I have ever seen in person or online has been a drawing of one. There have been some class winners in weak classes, but that is about it.

Walt I Am

I have to agree. They just look like hatchery birds to me. I think that the best thing they've got going on is the color varieties that have been accepted. There the only larger, non-game, breeds with these two color patterns. If they focused on them they could make the good. However, Marans suffer like Dorkings and Dels from being primarily attractive to new folks. I think that a breed, to be strong, needs to have a bedrock of experienced breeders maintaining it who foster correct practice in beginners. They need a culture behind them.

Marans, Dels, Welsummers, Barnevelders just don't have a strong Anglophone history, and Dorkings don't have a recent enough one.

 

[3riverschick]

If you get a chance to go to the TX, Ok, or GA shows with big Marans entries, I think you will see
some birds to approve of. I wish I could find that picture of "Hope", Bev Robertson's hen. That
Black Copper Marans was rarely, if ever, defeated in quality competition. She was stunning and
my ideal of what a true Black Copper Marans hen should be.
Best,
Karen