Cuckoo Maran - Egg color!

I have a cuckoo marans who lays a dark brown egg. Welsummers are another breed more easy to find that lay a beautiful dark brown and sometimes speckly egg.
 
my welsummer lays a speckled egg. it is not dark, but a normal brown, but the specks are sometimes dark brown. they are pretty!

my cuckoo lays normal brown...sometimes double yolkers! my kids love it.
 
I have both Cuckoo and Wheaton Marans. Both colors lay dark eggs, but not dark like the photos you see of the Black Copper. Sometimes I wonder if the photos of the super dark eggs are photo shopped. I do think that the birds from breeders will lay darker eggs than hatchery birds.
 
All Marans are french. The breed was named after the town/area where they were developed: Marans, France. My Cucko Marans lay eggs lighter in color than my RIR. My Black Copper Marans lay dark coppery brown eggs. They are about 1 shade lighter than the darkest egg on the Marans egg color chart.

Well, all Marans were originally French, but of course we have English Marans now too. The dark egg coloring is the same regardless of wether French or English.
 
Maran eggs get darker as they sit after they are laid. So if buying Maran hatching eggs you have to be careful they are not old eggs left sitting to darken. Also they lay darkest when they first start their laying cycle then get lighter. After they moult and rest they get darker again. The pigment that makes their eggs dark is the same that makes our blood dark.
 
Ive had cuckoo's that originated from hatchery birds that layed just a brown egg. Later I decided I wanted nicer birds so I hatched some from Bill Braden and Kelly Cratty stock..They layed solid 4's regularly. Beautiful birds.
 
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I just spoke with Ideal Hatchery as I was wanting the dark chocolate eggs and just today had ordered some Cuckoo Marans. Reading this prior to calling the second time, I panicked. They told me the Cuckoo lays the dark chocolate. I left my order as is. We will see.
 
I was of the impression all marans lay the really dark eggs. I have a blue copper and a black copper. Their eggs aren't the insane dark I had hoped for but certainly very dark. :) Are you positive she is a marans and not another barred breed? Here is a pic of my marans eggs with my normal brown eggs.

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