Are Guinea Hens good mother’s?

[ColtHandorf]

I was not accusing you of anything. You are welcome to your opinion.

I apologize for the misunderstanding.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

What I see being said is opinion only without any proof of anything.

Ha! You have me designing experiments in my head now, R2Elk! We need 20 separate, identical pens not in view or sound of one another. Then we can hatch 100 wild Guinea eggs and 100 domestic eggs (to avoid the potential confounding effect of parental rearing). Then we house 10 guineas in each pen, 5 male and 5 female, from each group. Provide nest boxes and alternate laying areas. Record laying output, hen broodiness, parental involvement, weight gain and mortality of keets... Actually, on typing this and considering those articles referenced above (considerable agonistic behavior between cocks in wild guineas, distances described in terms of hectares), I’d further hypothesize that my study design would be problematic. My guess would be that we’ve also selected for other traits not yet accounted for, like the ability to bear confinement and male tolerance of a high density of guinea cocks...

There is actually a study that examined genetic differences in wild and domestic guineas. What I found most interesting about this paper, was that there was greater genetic diversity within the Wild guineas than within the domesticated ones, reducing the functional population size of domesticated guineas. This finding suggests to me that there may be a narrow set of genes consistent with domestication of this species (given the proximity of wild guineas in this study...). A genetic bottleneck that prohibited interbreeding would be an alternative explanation.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1755-0998.13017

Anyway, I’m really not trying to stir things up or contribute to any feuds. I’m just genuinely interested in the effects of nature versus (or combined with) nurture in controlling setting and brooding behavior in chickens in guineas, as I’ve been observing, reading about, and puzzling over those while observing and manipulating our own flocks this past summer!

 

[Cyprus]

Ha! You have me designing experiments in my head now, R2Elk! We need 20 separate, identical pens not in view or sound of one another. Then we can hatch 100 wild Guinea eggs and 100 domestic eggs (to avoid the potential confounding effect of parental rearing). Then we house 10 guineas in each pen, 5 male and 5 female, from each group. Provide nest boxes and alternate laying areas. Record laying output, hen broodiness, parental involvement, weight gain and mortality of keets... Actually, on typing this and considering those articles referenced above (considerable agonistic behavior between cocks in wild guineas, distances described in terms of hectares), I’d further hypothesize that my study design would be problematic. My guess would be that we’ve also selected for other traits not yet accounted for, like the ability to bear confinement and male tolerance of a high density of guinea cocks...

There is actually a study that examined genetic differences in wild and domestic guineas. What I found most interesting about this paper, was that there was greater genetic diversity within the Wild guineas than within the domesticated ones, reducing the functional population size of domesticated guineas. This finding suggests to me that there may be a narrow set of genes consistent with domestication of this species (given the proximity of wild guineas in this study...). A genetic bottleneck that prohibited interbreeding would be an alternative explanation.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1755-0998.13017

Anyway, I’m really not trying to stir things up or contribute to any feuds. I’m just genuinely interested in the effects of nature versus (or combined with) nurture in controlling setting and brooding behavior in chickens in guineas, as I’ve been observing, reading about, and puzzling over those while observing and manipulating our own flocks this past summer!

I think you'd find it to be an impossible feat to take wild african helmeted Guineahen eggs from Africa and bring them back to America. That's poaching, which is subject to 5 years in jail and at least a $11,000USD fine
I know you were only hypothesizing, but I'm just telling you the implications.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I think you'd find it to be an impossible feat to take wild african helmeted Guineahen eggs from Africa and bring them back to America. That's poaching, which is subject to 5 years in jail and at least a $11,000USD fine
I know you were only hypothesizing, but I'm just telling you the implications.

Thanks Cyprus. There go my dreams...

 

[Kiki]

I think you'd find it to be an impossible feat to take wild african helmeted Guineahen eggs from Africa and bring them back to America. That's poaching, which is subject to 5 years in jail and at least a $11,000USD fine
I know you were only hypothesizing, but I'm just telling you the implications.

Can you ask your mother what the fine is for illegally shipping eggs within the US?

 

[Cyprus]

Thanks Cyprus. There go my dreams...

I wasn't trying to be rude. Just being realistic

 

[Pork Pie]

I think you'd find it to be an impossible feat to take wild african helmeted Guineahen eggs from Africa and bring them back to America. That's poaching, which is subject to 5 years in jail and at least a $11,000USD fine
I know you were only hypothesizing, but I'm just telling you the implications.

The birds in question are bred domestically so the term “poaching” could only refer to cooking them gently in a liquid.

 

[Cyprus]

The birds in question are bred domestically so the term “poaching” could only refer to cooking them gently in a liquid.

Read closer, please. The person I quoted was talking about taking wild guinea eggs. THAT is poaching.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I wasn't trying to be rude. Just being realistic

I’ll just scrap that particular grant application then. Thanks for the call to reality! Wait a minute! Maybe I just need a South African collaborator...

 

[Cyprus]