Im quite the newbe so If a hatchery isnt the best place to get pure Marans ?? How would I go about finding a good place that can be trusted??
Look in the forums on this site. There are quite a few people with marans who sell good dark eggs and/or chicks.
One good thing I can say about my Welsumers, is that they are very efficient layers. They are smaller and don't eat what the Marans do and produce a nice large egg. I also find the reddish terra cotta coloring to be very attractive to egg buyers. The roos are also a simply gorgeous bird.