A question of genetics

[Buster]

Can anyone tell me if rose or pea comb is a dominant gene and whether the rooster carries the gene or not? Also, if the dark egg laying gene is dominant and which parent carries it.

 

[Blisschick]

Yes, the pea comb is dominant, but I don't think it has to do with whether or not the rooster is carrying it or not. It has to do with the combination of the RRRR/rrrr gene.

 

[Buster]

Thanks for the info on that. I am planning to do some crossing to come up with a pea or rose combed chicken that is a good layer of interesting- colored eggs. Any more suggestions?

 

[Buster]

bump

 

[speckledhen]

I can't make any suggestions, but I can tell you that out of the cross between my Blue Orpington rooster (single-combed, naturally) and my Buff Brahma hen (pea-combed), every chick, male and female is pea-combed and most have varying degrees of leg feathering. So pea comb is definitely dominant. I knew it in my head, but for some reason, it came as a surprise to me when all the babies hatched out all over the country.

 

[Buster]

Thanks- this really helps my planning. I think I will put a dark egg- laying rooster on some pea- combed hens like ee's, buckeyes, or rose-combed like wyandottess and see what colors they lay. The pea or rose combs will be very useful in this cold weather. I am tired of frostbitten combs.

 

[pips&peeps]

Another thing to consider is that the blue egg gene is very close to the pea comb gene, that is why your ee's lay colored eggs, they almost always go hand in hand.

Jean

 

[Buster]

Thanks- I'm pretty interested in putting an EE rooster on my hens to see what their offspring will look like and what eggs they will produce.

 

[Picco]

Rose combs are dominant too, so if a rose combed breed is bred to a pea comb breed you get a cushion comb, which is still small and frostbite resistant. As far as I know comb genetics are carried equally by both sexes. The dark laying gene is not dominant; breeding a dark layer to another breed will just dilute the color, making it darker than the light layer's egg and lighter than the dark layer's egg. I remember reading that in penedesencas (maybe other dark layers too) the dark laying gene is stronger in the male, so a dark male crossed with a light female would produce darker eggs than a light male crossed with dark hens.

 

[ksacres]

Picco is right, if you cross a rose with a pea, you get a cushion comb. Neither are dominant to the other. You get genetics from BOTH parents, not just the rooster or just the hen. It takes two