Cuckoo Maran and Cuckoo Old English

[Robert G]

So I was looking for a dark brown egg layer but currently raising bantams and one recommendation was a Cuckoo Maran. That breed wasn't available as a bantam but they had a Cuckoo Old English breed. Does anyone know if the eggs would still be dark brown?

 

[sylviethecochin]

They would not be dark eggs. Cuckoo is the color of the chicken, all it means is that the chicken is striped; egg colors are independent of chicken color.

A breed like Maran lays dark eggs, OEG bantams lay pale, off-white eggs. Even if the standard breed lays dark eggs, there is no guarantee that the bantam variety will lay dark eggs too. Barneveldars, for instance, lay light eggs as bantams and dark eggs as large fowl.

I believe that Welsummer Bantams do lay dark brown eggs, if you can find some.

 

[Robert G]

They would not be dark eggs. Cuckoo is the color of the chicken, all it means is that the chicken is striped; egg colors are independent of chicken color.

A breed like Maran lays dark eggs, OEG bantams lay pale, off-white eggs. Even if the standard breed lays dark eggs, there is no guarantee that the bantam variety will lay dark eggs too. Berneveldars, for instance, lay light eggs as bantams and dark eggs as large fowl.

I believe that Welsummer Bantams do lay dark brown eggs, if you can find some.

Thank you so much! That makes sense. I'll check to see if they have Welsummers.