Ameraucauna - Color/Feather Grow In Sexing?

[SpicyDisaster]

We have 12 straight run Americaunas that are 2.5 and 1.5 weeks. Obviously too early to sex as much as I want to know right now. In reading up more on some threads I noticed mention that you can tell gender by dark/light coloring on the Blues and by the rate of feathers growing in. Is this legit?

Myth 1: Darker feather coloring = males

Myth 2: Slower feathering = male

For funsies, 1-4 are the 2.5wk old and 5 is 1.5 wk old. 4 is refusing to grow in feathers while the rest are all well on their way.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Darker blues is just a color. Some ues are super light, some look almost black. Both males and females can be either one

 

[NatJ]

Is this legit?
...
Myth 2: Slower feathering = male

Either gender can feather fast or slow.

It is possible to breed feather-sexable chicks (slow male, fast female.) But the hatchery producing your Ameraucanas probably did not do that. Feather sexable chicks are produced by a certain kind of cross (fast father, slow mother). Any other arrangement of parents will produce chicks that cannot be sexed by their feathering speed.

For funsies, 1-4 are the 2.5wk old... 4 is refusing to grow in feathers while the rest are all well on their way.

Chick 4 probably does have the slow feathering gene.
Once they grow up, it does not matter, unless you breed from these chickens.

If you do intend to breed from these chickens, you may want to mark the slow one and decide whether you want slow feathering in the next generation of chickens.

If the slow chick is female, she will pass it to her sons but not her daughters (if the father has fast feathering, this produces feather-sexable chicks.) So you could keep her daughters if you want her other genes without the slow feathering.

If the slow chick is male, it can pass that gene to chicks of both genders. It might also carry the gene for fast feathering, or it might not.

Fast/slow feathering is on the Z sex chromosome. Males have ZZ, females have ZW.
So females only have one gene for feathering speed, while males have two. Slow feathering is dominant over fast feathering.

 

[SpicyDisaster]

Either gender can feather fast or slow.

It is possible to breed feather-sexable chicks (slow male, fast female.) But the hatchery producing your Ameraucanas probably did not do that. Feather sexable chicks are produced by a certain kind of cross (fast father, slow mother). Any other arrangement of parents will produce chicks that cannot be sexed by their feathering speed.


Chick 4 probably does have the slow feathering gene.
Once they grow up, it does not matter, unless you breed from these chickens.

If you do intend to breed from these chickens, you may want to mark the slow one and decide whether you want slow feathering in the next generation of chickens.

If the slow chick is female, she will pass it to her sons but not her daughters (if the father has fast feathering, this produces feather-sexable chicks.) So you could keep her daughters if you want her other genes without the slow feathering.

If the slow chick is male, it can pass that gene to chicks of both genders. It might also carry the gene for fast feathering, or it might not.

Fast/slow feathering is on the Z sex chromosome. Males have ZZ, females have ZW.
So females only have one gene for feathering speed, while males have two. Slow feathering is dominant over fast feathering.

That is really good to know. I have them all banded and didn't have the intention to keep slow-feathering in the gene pool. Knowing that it could turn out to be useful for determining future generations might sway my mind depending on what it turns out to be. I appreciate you taking the time to provide your wealth of insight here!