Araucana thread anyone?

[cashdl]

This was an araucana rooster I got from Ann. He was lovely.



Her birds have really nice heads and the hens I have are built beautifully.

Lanae

 

[smoothmule]

I love all the tuft types but two of my favorite are the spiral and those big dangling tufts. I have hatched several tuft types, the spirals, the big dangling ones and the upswept type that go back.

Here is a drawing with types of tufts but I don't think it really shows them well



Here are some on my Araucana's, I've labeled them the way they look to me, there may be some names for each type of tuft out there somewhere but I haven't found anything.

Backswept tufts



Large Dangling Tufts, these really make me think of earrings




Spiral Tufts - this is on a young cockerel so they were not fully opened up but you can see how they are spiral looking.



Not sure what I'd call this type, not as long and backswept as the cockerel above, neat little petals though, kind of like the third pic on the top row in the drawing.



Large, sticks out but not as neatly shaped as the blue above.



There are more shapes than I have here. I don't think one is better than the other, they're just different. I prefer them to be full, large, evenly placed and just below the eye or a little lower. The dangling ones seem to look better if placed lower. If they're smaller, I like them placed higher. It just seems more balanced to me. If they are placed high, and they are huge and dangly, I don't think that would look right but that's just my preferences.


Isn't it funny how the tufts give a look of a certain type of personality? The black dangly ones make me think older lady that likes gawdy jewelry. The backswept on the larger cockerel makes me think tough guy with his hair slicked back. The little blue pullet is sweet and neat, the red head.....she's got a streak of "fun" in her personality. The white cockerel, sort of a dizzy fella........

 

[Rumbull]

Great tuft pictures Smoothmule! Thanks for posting them. You have very lovely birds!
I would say that I am fond of the tufts on the blue pullet, 4th picture. They are my favorite. I have not had the spiral in my flock yet. I have not seen that before. Very cool!

 

[smoothmule]

Rumbull,
Thanks, I love taking pics and tufts are a favorite subject. I take pictures of all sorts of things, their feet, legs, everything. I like to study them and when I'm out and they're clucking around, never standing still, it's hard to really study them. I can sit and study a photo and see things I had not noted before.


Here's a picture I snapped today of one of my pullets, hatched this summer. I knew she had scattered mottling (white tips) but had never just picked her up to look at her. I was petting her and getting ready to take some pictures when she sort of squatted and I turned her on her side (she must be nearing laying age) and I was shocked at how many feathers had white tips, on her legs, under her wings, lower breast area, all over her fluffy parts. Sort of took me by surprise but I snapped this pic and looked her over better. Almost looks like barring but it's just white on the tip of most of her feathers.....

 

[poularde]

Very interesting color on that hen. It does almost look like an incomplete barring. If there is such a thing. Not sure if it is the light, but it almost looks like she has some shafting on her chest.

I really like the tufts on that ginger girl. So pretty! my little white girl has tufts similar to hers. One sweeps forward the other back. I agree their tufts do seem to fit their personality.

 

[smoothmule]

Poularde,
The white on the black pullet above is mottling. It's all on the very tip end of each feather in some areas and the undersides are mostly fluff and close together so it does look like barring at a distance because the tips are so close together. On the fluff, it's sort of fringed on the tips so it looks different because of that too but you can see on the body, it's very nice, neat tips of white and it varies from the entire tip being white to a spot of white at the tip on her regular feathers. She has one large tuft feather that is entirely white. It will be interesting to see how much of this remains when she is mature. From what I'm told about mottling, if she ends up solid black with no white, she is heterozygous for mottled. If she keeps the white tips, even though she's not entirely covered in mottling, she is homozygous for mottling. As nice as she is then, I would hesitate to use her if she is homozygous mottled, with my blacks or else I'll have bits of white everywhere.

 

[mstricer]

This was an araucana rooster I got from Ann. He was lovely.



Her birds have really nice heads and the hens I have are built beautifully.

Lanae

Are you talking about Ann Charles. Just wanting to know, I just put a deposit on some of her eggs for spring.

 

[poularde]

I will answer for cashdl. She was talking about Ann Horsman. Congrats on your eggs!

 

[cashdl]

Thanks Poularde,

Yes, Ann Horsman. There are 3 Anns in the araucana world. Ann Horsman, Ann Cushing, and Ann Charles. Fortunately there is only 1 Lanae Cash and Cash's Blue Eggs. LOL!


Lanae

 

[mstricer]

I will answer for cashdl. She was talking about Ann Horsman. Congrats on your eggs!

Thank you, I don't have them yet. I figured if I ordered now I would be close to the top of the list.