Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[Raven1]

They were sold as solid black.  I hatched 4 our of 18.  3 of them have a golden undertone to the white down, and 1 of them has a bluish tone to the white down.

Well TRUE solid Blacks are very hard to come by so you are on the wait and see train now Good Luck! Post some pictures and you will get more opinions.

 

[SIMZ]

It's genetic in my opinion. I had a cross bird that developed it and hatched some of her eggs - a very small number, as I recall (she was an "olive egger"), and one of her female offspring developed it as well. I feel like it results from crop statis (crop not "moving" food along as it should). I also had a bird of another breed that developed an extremely pendulous crop; I removed her from my breeding pen & put her in the layer pen, where she lived without any health issues to be about 5 before passing. I sure don't recommend keeping them (I was new to chickens back then and didn't know any differently), as they do suffer since they're not getting the nutrition they need. Since the crop moves too slowly, they're not getting nutrients, which compels them to eat more, causing the pendulous crop. The food can go rancid in the crop.

Thanks for the info, Wynette.

 

[desertmarcy]

I have a Black Copper Marans hen (just over a year) that is having a crop issue. She hatched from the egg of one of my two hens last year - one of which developed a bizarre crop issue that was possibly pendulous crop. This hen looks just like I remember the other looking. Are crop problems inherited? Was that possibly a genetic weakness that was passed on or is it just a coincidence?

Pendulous crop is a genetic weakness in the ligaments holding the crop in place.

 

[LogCabinFarm]

They are 3months old today [nyd hatch] cottage hill line from Tenn.

 

[LogCabinFarm]

some more pics

 

[maryhysong]

Pendulous crop is a genetic weakness in the ligaments holding the crop in place.

That was my suspicions also; I had several pendulous crops in the birds I got from down south. A couple died from related issues and I culled one because she just wasn't getting enough to eat and not growing with the others. There is one left in the layer flock. So far so good, she lays fairly and seems to get enough to eat, but at the first sign of a problem I will cull her too. Since I thought it might be genetic I didn't breed from any of them.

 

[Chickenman76]

I have a question. What color would I get by crossing a White Marans Roo with a Black Copper Hen?

 

[GaryDean26]

Do you know the history on your White Marans?

Some while Marans flocks were started from sports for Cuckoo Marans lines, other were started from spots from Black Copper Marans lines. Some lines now have blood from both the cuckoo based lines mixed with the Black Copper Marans based lines. I wouldn't be surprised to find every other possible color hidden under there too though (blue, wheaten, etc.). So unless you know what the non-white ancestry of your white Marans is there is no way to know what you would get.

At any rate it would not to fit any color standard even if the White Marans is from Black Copper Marans ancestry because the balance of modifiers will not have been maintained through the pairing of White Marans.

 

[Ihilani Coffee]

Do you know the history on your White Marans?

Some while Marans flocks were started from sports for Cuckoo Marans lines, other were started from spots from Black Copper Marans lines. Some lines now have blood from both the cuckoo based lines mixed with the Black Copper Marans based lines. I wouldn't be surprised to find every other possible color hidden under there too though (blue, wheaten, etc.). So unless you know what the non-white ancestry of your white Marans is there is no way to know what you would get.

At any rate it would not to fit any color standard even if the White Marans is from Black Copper Marans ancestry because the balance of modifiers will not have been maintained through the pairing of White Marans.

What about recessive whites from BCM bred to each other? That's got to be white only. It's just crossing them with a solid that will get you a mixed bag, correct? If the rec. white is bred to straight BCM you get a recessive white carrier that outwardly looks BCM. If the BCM carries recessive white then 50-50 chance of rec. white or (nonwhite) carrier.

 

[DMRippy]

I have a question. What color would I get by crossing a White Marans Roo with a Black Copper Hen?

White birds can hide all kinds of genetics so it would just be pot luck. Whites are the WORST to use for making crosses because they can hide everything.... red, barring, blue, black, mottled, laced, penciled...... you name it white can cover it completely.

White comes in Recessive and Dom. Recessive takes 2 copies to see white and dom white will show with only one copy BUT you will have more leakage. That is what paint silkies are Dom white (1 copy with leakage) I get that with my SBEL too.... Dom white with black spots all over... make it easy to tell them apart from the reg WL.