BLUEST & LARGEST EGGS AMERAUCANA OR CREAM LEGBAR?

[GaryDean26]

Hello everyone, I am loving blue eggs right now...I am curious to know WHICH BREED will lay the BIGGEST AND BLUEST EGG! I am also interested in doing everything I can of course for their comfort and feed to achieve this...but in general, which breed will offer the biggest and bluest? Cream Legbar or Ameraucana? What are your experience and thoughts? Cheers!

I have never owned an Auracana, Americana, or Easter Egger so I can't speak for any of them, but I do have Cream Legbars. My breeding line is 7 years old and so what I get is not what you are going to get from anyone else because it only takes about 3 generations for the traits in a breeding line to shift. Other lines of Legbars that haven't focused on breeding for eggs size, egg color, etc will not produce the same results as our line. The same goes for the Auracana, Americana, etc. If the line is type breed for eggs color or egg size it is going to be really good in those areas where other line do the same breed that we breed for show points or feather color aren't.

When we started to breed Lebgars we got eggs from some hens that were very blue and some from other hens that more a mint color. We got eggs from some hens that had a smooth texture and some from other hens that had more of a chalky texture. We got eggs from some hens that were really big (i.e. consistently over 68 grams with averages more in the 70-72 gram range and some single yolked eggs over 80 grams and some double yolked eggs over 110 grams).

So...we breed for big eggs in the first few years with a focus on number of eggs but no focus on color or texture. After 4 years we start to cull for color and texture too. Were are currently getting 7 out of 8 hens laying the smooth texture eggs. 7 out of 8 hens laying the bluer egg color, and 2 out of 3 hens laying eggs that are over 68 grams.

Below is one of out double yolkers.

This was one of our larger single yolkers coming in at 90 grams. No that is NOT a daily occurrence. The pullet that laid this egg would drop a egg this size about every three weeks. We lost her to a predator this year. Other than her, eggs this size were more like once a laying season. Most our eggs were in the 68-72 gram range.

 

[emrya]

consider the Whiting True Blue as well!

 

[GaryDean26]

Yep... I did a interview with Dr. Whiting about a year ago for a publication on breeding for Blue eggs. His Whiting Blue are breed for egg color and noting else. I have never see any eggs from the Whiting Blues. The photos look about the same as other blue eggs, but photos don't tell half the story. They are type bred for egg color so they have got to be pretty good in that area. After the Interview I was most interested in Dr. Whitings hen line for his Whiting Greens. He said they had the best blue egg color. He crossed them with a male line that carries the brown egg genes to produce the Whiting Greens. He said that his Greens have a single Comb and the Blues have a pea comb. He said that he did that so he can sort the two and know what line they were from.

 

[GrannyHeeney]

View attachment 1617200
The blue egg on top is from my Splash Ameracauna from My Pet Chicken, and the egg directly under that one is from our Easter Egger. Both of these eggs are still on the smaller side because Pig and Frida just started laying. Also, my Ameracauna Pig has the best personality ever. She is so lovely and personable, and insists on cuddles. In retrospect I would have more of her! And though our Easter Egger Frida has come around a lot, she is incredibly skittish. If personality plays a part at all. I’m sure some EE are lovely and personable as well.

Wow, nice eggs!

 

[emrya]

Yep... I did a interview with Dr. Whiting about a year ago for a publication on breeding for Blue eggs. His Whiting Blue are breed for egg color and noting else. I have never see any eggs from the Whiting Blues. The photos look about the same as other blue eggs, but photos don't tell half the story. They are type bred for egg color so they have got to be pretty good in that area. After the Interview I was most interested in Dr. Whitings hen line for his Whiting Greens. He said they had the best blue egg color. He crossed them with a male line that carries the brown egg genes to produce the Whiting Greens. He said that his Greens have a single Comb and the Blues have a pea comb. He said that he did that so he can sort the two and know what line they were from.

I just got my first Whiting Blue egg this weekend- I can't repost the pic here as I am at work, but the link to it is here. The green egg in the pic is a whiting green.

That sounds like a fun interview!

 

[dalasgalas]

Our EE Pip lays eggs that are enormous. Sometimes I wonder they can even shoot out her shoot hole.

 

[GaryDean26]

I just got my first Whiting Blue egg this weekend- I can't repost the pic here as I am at work, but the link to it is here. The green egg in the pic is a whiting green.

That sounds like a fun interview!

Yes it was a fun interview. I was really excited when we got the interview set up. Tom was great to interview and a real class act. He said that the Whiting Blues started when a friend from Graduate School send him some hatching eggs that included some blue eggs. He hatch the blue eggs and kept them because he though his daughters might like them. He was quite impressed with them and when he later talked to his friend he said that the blue eggs layers that he got were about the best chickens he had seen. His friend said good I will give them to you because you will do something with them. He then boxes the whole flock up and shipped them to Tom from several stated away. His friend had worked with them for something like 10 years and Tom has been breeding them since. I know that Dr. Whiting did some of his post graduate work at the University of Arkansas which makes me wonder if the Whiting Blues are related to the the U of A Blues. I wasn't quick enough on my feet to ask that question in the interview. At any rate Tom's friend was in Arizona and Tom was in Colorado so the Whiting Blues would be well removed from the U of A Blues line even if they did have the same origins (which is possible). Another option would be to look into the University of Arkansas Blues. There were people in the BYC breeding them several years ago even though the University is no longer working with them.

 

[PattyNH]

Top egg, Bielefelder
Middle, Ameraucana
Bottom, Swedish duck

Not the greatest lighting in terms of color, but you can see the size. Her eggs are quite pale in general.
View attachment 1616230

100% same experience with my first flock - 2 Americaunas and 3 Bielfelders. And my Americaunas were significantly less productive at 2 eggs every 3 days between the two of them.

 

[shaneensmith]

Araucanas, Ameraucanas, and Legbars are guaranteed to lay blue eggs.
The egg on the right is from an F1 Easter Egger, the 2 eggs on the left are from true Ameraucanas View attachment 1615745

stunning just stunning!

 

[bfarms]

If you want large blue eggs, I would suggest going with golden crele legbar. They have a nice large shape to them and good shell quality. Some of the cream legbars may produce green eggs, which is fine if you want green. As for ameraucana, not all lines and varieties will produce the same quality shelled eggs. Different lines may give you different shades of blue or egg size. For instance: Our buff ameraucana are light blue and the eggs are small. Our B/BS ameraucana are medium to large with a very nice blue color. Ameraucana tend to be chatty and curious. Our silver ameraucana is very friendly. They come to me every time they see me and I can rub their chests and pet them. It is quite enjoyable trait in them. Just ask a lot of questions on who you choose to buy from. They should know their stock and what to expect.

Candace

Breezy Bird Farms
Canada