Ancona color genetics

[heavenjumper]

I got some Ancona ducklings earlier this year and ended up with my drake giving me some questions on his color genetics. My girls consist of 2 black and white and 4 chocolate and white. My drake has been black and white up until today when I noticed some chocolate tones in his colored patches. The markings on his head are pure black, but the rest of his body seems to have a combination of black and chocolate. On close inspection, his wing feathers appear to be black toward the base with the tips being more chocolate. Itried to get good pictures, but these were the best I got... apologies for my husband's bare belly. Would this make him tricolor, or just a very dark chocolate? If he is in fact tricolor, what color ducklings will he produce with my hens?

 

[cheezenkwackers]

I have never heard of tricolor so I can't answer that. But, I suspect he is black but carries sex-linked brown (chocolate). Since it is a sex-linked trait carried on the Z chromosome only the boys can be carriers as they have two Z chromosomes ZZ (girls are ZW). If so, if you cross him to your black girls, any chocolate ducklings will be girls (black could be either). But, if you cross him to your chocolate girls you can get both black and chocolate of both sexes.

 

[heavenjumper]

I have never heard of tricolor so I can't answer that. But, I suspect he is black but carries sex-linked brown (chocolate). Since it is a sex-linked trait carried on the Z chromosome only the boys can be carriers as they have two Z chromosomes ZZ (girls are ZW). If so, if you cross him to your black girls, any chocolate ducklings will be girls (black could be either). But, if you cross him to your chocolate girls you can get both black and chocolate of both sexes.

Thank you for this information. I'm not sure if tricolor really exists in ducks as this is the first flock I've had that color plays a factor(I only had Welsh Harlequins before), but that's the only thing I know to call it. I'm hoping to also add some Blue and white girls at some point, so that will make color possibilities even bigger. I'm loving learning the genetics of coloration though!