Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[VillageChicken]

Hey Don,
Does that BC cull have a dark eye or is it the picture?
There's an ongoing (friendly) debate about eye color and copper.
Beautiful birds!

 

[wooch]

I just hatched my first four BCM chicks, is it O.K. if they have feathers on their middle toe? They are from a show rooster that placed in the Newnan show.

 

[doxies1]

I got my first marans eggs today and I was a little disapointed that they were not as dark as most I have bought to hatch. Mainly I was disapointed because I was under the impression that the first eggs were the darkest. Words of wisdom from someone?

 

[Lotsapaints]

It takes at least 20 days for the color to work the kinks out I've had them start out real dark then go light then get dark again and I've had them start out light get a little darker then get dark then there are the ones that must forget to paint them they are just light and they were hatched from dark eggs and my Silver Cuckoos were very dark they laid all winter got lighter took 2 weeks off and are back to dark eggs again. I only have a few BC's one always lays a nice dark egg but it took her 2 months to get it down and I always can tell hers apart very nice satin finish no spots...but she's not good colored brown fluff a little too much copper and too dark eyes but she lays 5 to 6 eggs a week oh well.....

 

[VillageChicken]

There it is again... dark eyes on a bird that's not too dark.

 

[VillageChicken]

Quote:
It's supposed to be the outer toe only.
I've only seen that on hens so far... it happens, I think it's a fault, not a DQ. Walt would know.

 

[pinkchick]

Quote:
Hi Big!

From time to time some Marans may lay a chaulky whiteish to grayish purplish coated egg. When it is wet it should be a nice colored Marans egg underneath that coating. The coating should dry pretty quickly and as you watch it dry it will dry right back to that whiteish chaulky coating. Nothing to worry about, some pullets and hens can lay one every now and then and some can lay one almost everytime they lay. I believe its just extra heavy bloom that is deposited when laid. The only thing I found with these eggs is that they can be very hard to hatch. I had a Splash Marans hen that laid these eggs almost everytime she laid. I think last winter I tried hatching them all winter long and finally the last attempt with 6 of her eggs...a couple hatched. One lays a normal Marans egg all the time and the other lays a coated purplish one like her mother.

Yesterday I got one from a Black Copper pullet that normally lays a very dark egg.....yesterday's egg was actually a smokey lavender color, like the color of a Croad Langshan egg. In it's own right, it is a very pretty egg. I just took it out of the refridgerator and when it gets back up to room temp. I will get a picture of it for you. I have noticed that these types of eggs will get darker when cold, but sat back out at room temp. they will change back to the chaulky coated egg.

I have also had this same smokey purplish coating happen in my Welsummer eggs and Barnevelder eggs. I don't think that it is something that just happens in dark egg laying breeds, I believe it happens in all breeds and on the lighter tan to cream colored eggs it just isn't as pronounced or as easy to see as it is on the darker eggs.

 

[snowbird]

Quote:
I think it is more the angle of the picture. In my Marans I find no correlation to eye color and hackle color. I have Pure Black BC marans females that have the Orange eye. I believe there is so much about the Marans that is not really known that it is hard to say that they should do certain things genetically. Don

 

[pinkchick]

Quote:
It's supposed to be the outer toe only.
I've only seen that on hens so far... it happens, I think it's a fault, not a DQ. Walt would know.

Agreed. It should be on the outer toe only, but from time to time one shows up on the middle toe. No worries, if you are planning on breeding or showing just don't use any bird for your breeding program that has them on the middle toes. If you are just looking for dark egg layers it doesn't matter at all.

Wait......just re-read your post....do they all have feathers on their middle toes??? What are your goals with your birds? Do you want to show someday? Do you want to dabble in breeding for the fun of it or improve upon the breed? Or do you want them just for the pretty eggs?

 

[wooch]

I had planned on breeding for fun and maybe showing if there was a show close to home.