Aurcana, EE or other

[andy short]

The farmer I got this chicken said it was an Aurcana but I know that's not correct. He also said it would lay Green eggs which may be true but it doesn't look like any EE I've seen any ideas on what it may be.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

You are correct that your bird is not an Araucana...they are rumpless (tail-less), yellow legs, pea comb (row of peas for the comb type) and usually have ear tufts (though some don't as the ear tuft gene is lethal if both tuft genes inherited so you have to breed tuft with tuftless), and lay blue eggs. They do come in a variety of colors, but not that.

Not an Ameraucana either as they have beards and muffs (think Santa Claus), pea comb, slate grey legs, and only 8 standard colors, of which yours isn't, and lay blue eggs.

It could be an Easter Egger which would be a hybrid mix of Ameraucana -or- Araucana on one side and any other breed on the other side. EE's can look like almost anything as they are technically "mutts" and the genetics can create a wide variation among the offspring. Because of that, they can lay green, brown, blue, white, or even pink eggs...green being one of the most common colors....but only if one parent was a purebred Araucana or Ameraucana so that at least 1 blue gene was passed to the offspring (blue is dominant) and the other parent a brown layer as it takes blue over brown to create a green layer.

If the farmer had Araucanas and bred them with standard breeds, you could get something like your bird. Ameraucanas over standard usually keeps the beard and muff and creates green legs, but not always. He might have simply had EE's and bred that over standard layers...which means you've got a barnyard mix and more likely (50%) you'll not get anything other than brown eggs depending upon the genetic makeup of the EE parent.

I can't see the comb really well, but it looks like it could have a pea comb...if it is an EE, having a pea comb makes it much more likely it got the blue egg gene (the pea comb and blue egg shell color lie close on the genetic strand)...which means, depending upon whether the other side was a brown egg layer, it will lay green eggs...which is what the farmer was probably indicating.

Pretty bird....I like the color pattern....assuming that is a dilute blue with gold...(hard to tell in photo if the colors are true)...it may be an EE over a Blue Laced Red Wyandotte, but that is only speculation.

It however is not an Araucana, and that was in error by the farmer who either didn't know better or was purposely misleading.

LofMc


Here's a link to a really good article with photos to show the differences
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2011/09/ameraucana-easter-egger-or-araucana.html

 

[Blackberry18]

It's not an Aracauna, it lacks ear tuffs (a common feature of the breed, though not present in all varieties) and has a tail. It's not a pure Ameraucana, either. It could be an Easter Egger (hybrids that still contain the blue egg gene), but it's rare to see one with yellow legs, as all of the aforementioned breeds usually have blue/green/grey legs. Like Lady of McCamley mentioned above, it does look like it has a pea comb, so that heightens the chance of it being an Easter Egger. The plumage reminds me of a Red Sex-Link. If it came from a farmer, then chances are it could be a very mixed breed. You'll have to wait and see what the egg color is.

 

[andy short]

Thanks for the info. I'm guessing he just hatched s green egg and thats why he said it was a green layer. He did have some blue laced red so you may be wright about that. I did not see anything that looked like an araucana but he has lots of birds running around. She is gold and silver laced picture do's not do her justice but I spent about 20 min trying to take this one.
Thanks again for the input

 

[junebuggena]

Lots of birds running around means that he is selling mixed breeds. He can't guarantee parentage, let alone what egg color she will produce.

 

[Blackberry18]

Lots of birds running around means that he is selling mixed breeds. He can't guarantee parentage, let alone what egg color she will produce.

Agreed. I'm guessing, like he said, green, or brown due the red earlobes.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Mixed breed or EE.

 

[donrae]

She looks to have a pea comb, so may indeed lay a colored egg. Love the color, happy surprises like her are one reason I love my barnyard mixes!

 

[Lady of McCamley]

I agree with Donrae...I love my barnyard mixes...they are especially pretty with unusual patterns, hardy, and lay well...but most often brown or white eggs.

One small correction in the thread thoughts, EE's can frequently have yellow legs. It is a mistake to treat EE's as if they are standardized like a breed because they are not. They are hybrid mixes, mutts if you will. So, they can look like anything depending upon the genetics of the parents, which can be Araucana on one side, and by breed standard Araucanas can have yellow or willow legs. While true Araucanas are rarer, they are becoming more frequent.

Usually, because of what the feed stores sell as "Ameraucana" or "Americana," which are really hybrid green egg layers correctly called EE, people form in their minds this picture of an EE being bearded/muffed with green legs as that is what is produced when you have an Ameraucana on one side and a brown layer breed on the other.

With the explosion of Olive Eggers, a mix of blue egg layer on one side with a dark brown layer on the other to produce an olive egg layer, you now have other breeds bringing in the blue gene by way of Cream Crested Legbars and Isbars mixing with brown layers to get green or olive layers, further confusing things.

So the concept of EE being something that is only green legged with beard/muff is falling away as more breeders, many of the backyard type, are breeding their own designer versions. And since EE is not standardized by any formal definition, it can get pretty confusing.

LofMc

 

[andy short]

If it dos have a green tent to its egg and I breed it with a blue maran will it make an olive egger