What one must realize is that not every black chicken carries the same genes as another black chicken. One male black chicken could carry the silver and the gold gene while anther carries all gold or another caries all silver. There are all kinds of genes a black bird can have that a person would never know the bird carries. So if one person breeds black to blue and gets good results- Ya-Hoo for them. Another person may not be able to breed black to blue because of the genetic that make up of the black.
Each persons experience with black or blue mating is based upon the genetic makeup of the birds they are crossing. Not all black birds are genetically the same just as all blue birds are not genetically the same. If a certain breeding regimen works for you that is great and if another person has a different experience that is great also.
Here is some information on black genetics. Black birds are usually extended black or E/E at the E locus but they can also be birchen or ER/ER or they could be heterozygous or split E/ER. Black birds could also be heterozygous for other genes like E/eb or E/e+ or ER/eb or ER/eWh so as you can see the genes that make a black or blue bird can vary. Some black birds are eb/eb. Birds that clean yellow legs and are not barred are usually brown or eb.
eb= brown eWh= dominant wheaten e+ = wild type
Black birds that carry extended black have black legs because the E gene causes black pigment to be deposited in the skin and scales on the legs. The birchen gene can also add black pigment to the skin but not like E some birchen birds have black legs and others do not. Birds that have clean yellow legs and are not barred are usually brown or eb an example is the black wyandotte.
Blue birds that have lacing carry two genes melanotic (Ml) and the pattern gene or Pg. The melonotic gene adds the black to the feather and the Pg gene takes the black (not effected by blue) and arranges the black into a lace. Blue birds that do not have a black or bluish black head do not have melanotic. In males, the melanotic gene makes the head, back, shoulders and neck and saddle hackles black.
There have been two major studies dealing with black lacing on a blue. One study says blues need the columbian gene (Co) in addition to Ml and Pg while another study indicated Co was not needed.
Tim
