Ameracauna???

[thecoachswife83]

Hi there!!! I bought these sweet little girls and they were listed as ameracaunas, but they have such sleek faces, no muffs or beards of any kind, 5 weeks old. My girls last year had fluffy cheeks from the get go! Any idea if they might be a different breed???

 

[thecoachswife83]

 

[thecoachswife83]

Anyone?????

 

[drewskimac]

Not Ameracauna. Look like easter egger to me. I can't tell you how many time i have bought "Ameracaunas, Americanas, Ameraucanas" when i knew that in reality the are easter eggers. 9 times out of 10 (or maybe even 99 times out of 100) These birds will be easter eggers. Some hatcheries are simply lying, some don't know the difference, and some stores think they got true Ameracaunas when they actually got easter eggers. I've been in the same boat as you before, thinking and being told I had Ameracaunas when in reality they were easter eggers. However, easter eggers are by no means a bad thing. They are gorgeous birds and give a nice color variety to your egg basket. No, they don't just lay blue eggs like many people believe - they can lay brown, cream, blue, green and any other "colored eggs" They are still a wonderful addition to have to your flock!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Not Ameracauna. Look like easter egger to me. I can't tell you how many time i have bought "Ameracaunas, Americanas, Ameraucanas" when i knew that in reality the are easter eggers. 9 times out of 10 (or maybe even 99 times out of 100) These birds will be easter eggers. Some hatcheries are simply lying, some don't know the difference, and some stores think they got true Ameracaunas when they actually got easter eggers. I've been in the same boat as you before, thinking and being told I had Ameracaunas when in reality they were easter eggers. However, easter eggers are by no means a bad thing. They are gorgeous birds and give a nice color variety to your egg basket. No, they don't just lay blue eggs like many people believe - they can lay brown, cream, blue, green and any other "colored eggs" They are still a wonderful addition to have to your flock!

x2

LofMc

 

[thecoachswife83]

Thanks!!! I kind of had the hunch, I have an olive egger hen and roo and even they had the fluffy cheeks!!!! I picked up 2 for my friend as well and they totally have the puffy cheeks! Just couldn't figure out why my girls didn't! They're so sweet though and I love the colored eggs. I hope I get at least 1 blue layer! Note, both girls have green legs.

 

[drewskimac]

Thanks!!! I kind of had the hunch, I have an olive egger hen and roo and even they had the fluffy cheeks!!!! I picked up 2 for my friend as well and they totally have the puffy cheeks! Just couldn't figure out why my girls didn't! They're so sweet though and I love the colored eggs. I hope I get at least 1 blue layer! Note, both girls have green legs.

You probably will get a blue layer and if you're lucky maybe even a pink no. not light brown, a real easter pink. I've seen a few and they're so cool!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Thanks!!! I kind of had the hunch, I have an olive egger hen and roo and even they had the fluffy cheeks!!!! I picked up 2 for my friend as well and they totally have the puffy cheeks! Just couldn't figure out why my girls didn't! They're so sweet though and I love the colored eggs. I hope I get at least 1 blue layer! Note, both girls have green legs.

The green legs are a total give away to EE, as is the gold color pattern. (Ameraucanas only come in a Silver chipmunk that turns into a Silver pattern....never a gold based chipmunk turning into the classic gold partridge pattern).

Whether you get a blue or green or brown or pink egg layer will depend on the genetics of the parent birds...if they had an actual full blooded Ameraucana on the premises, rather than an EE, your chances are very good for blue or green as blue is dominant....(IF the Ameraucana carried both of the 2 blue genes)

If you breed an EE, or a 1 gene blue Ameraucana, over a non-blue type (white or brown layer), the dynamics change a lot, so at best you could get 50% brown (or white) and 50% green (or blue) depending upon whether the other parent is a white egg layer or brown egg layer (blue over white produces shades of blue; blue over brown produces shades of green).

Pink comes with additional blush added over the brown egg, and the genetics for that is pretty complicated.

The good news is look to the comb type. If they have a pea comb, there is a much stronger likelihood that they will be blue/green egg layers as the blue gene is close to the pea comb gene on the dna strand.

Hopefully these girls will lay nice colored eggs for you too.
LofMc

 

[Michael OShay]

The green legs are a total give away to EE, as is the gold color pattern. (Ameraucanas only come in a Silver chipmunk that turns into a Silver pattern....never a gold based chipmunk turning into the classic gold partridge pattern).

Whether you get a blue or green or brown or pink egg layer will depend on the genetics of the parent birds...if they had an actual full blooded Ameraucana on the premises, rather than an EE, your chances are very good for blue or green as blue is dominant....(IF the Ameraucana carried both of the 2 blue genes)

If you breed an EE, or a 1 gene blue Ameraucana, over a non-blue type (white or brown layer), the dynamics change a lot, so at best you could get 50% brown (or white) and 50% green (or blue) depending upon whether the other parent is a white egg layer or brown egg layer (blue over white produces shades of blue; blue over brown produces shades of green).

Pink comes with additional blush added over the brown egg, and the genetics for that is pretty complicated.

The good news is look to the comb type. If they have a pea comb, there is a much stronger likelihood that they will be blue/green egg layers as the blue gene is close to the pea comb gene on the dna strand.

Hopefully these girls will lay nice colored eggs for you too.
LofMc

Agreed.

 

[thecoachswife83]

They're beautiful and sweet regardless!!! The other 2 I bought for a friend are silver with puffy cheeks and looked so different than mine that I honestly wouldn't have believed they came from the same place!!! As far as comb, I'm not sure how to tell if it's a pea comb, and my EE I have now basically has a squiggly single comb, If that makes any sense at all!