Blue Egg Question

[Demeter]

If you hatch an EE chick from a blue or green egg, will the chick grow up to lay colored eggs, or will it possibly lay brown eggs? Does it matter if it's a pure breed Ameraucana, Araucana, or just a normal Easter Egger? What is the probability that each of those breeds will lay colored eggs?

 

[dave_Cash69]

good question.
i also, would like to know this

 

[pips&peeps]

It depends on what color egg gene the rooster carries. If the rooster carries the blue egg gene, then yes. If he carries a brown egg gene then the possibility is 50-50.

 

[Demeter]

Thanks for that! So it doesn't depend on the hen at all? What if a blue gene carrying roo mated with another breed hen... say silkie for example, would the resulting chicks still lay the blue eggs??

 

[pips&peeps]

Quote:
Yes it does.

A green egg laying hen carries both the blue egg gene and the brown egg gene. You need to continue to get the blue egg gene in the line to keep the color. If the roo carries the brown egg gene only and the hen carries both, then just do the math, your chances are less of getting a green egg.

If you cross those genes with a silkie, then you are dabbling with three different colors of egg shells. So you could get any.

 

[Demeter]

OHH okay. So blue egg EE roo+ EE hen=better chances for colored eggs?

 

[pips&peeps]

 

[Mahonri]

Yup. better chances.

 

[Demeter]

lol so if they both came from colored eggs then what would the percent be...75? (sorry i'm not super quick on the uptake)

 

[AHappychick]

in trying to darken the color egg if I breed Blue egg Araucanas Roo to blue egg laying hen and get light blue eggs do I have to introduce a darker blue egg layer to the breeding program to get the eggs darker blue or if I keep breeding the from 2nd generation (is that F2???) blue egg hens back to the blue egg roo will the color blue get darker or stronger?