D'uccle Thread

[Buns]

How common are black mottled d'uccles? Do they come in any other mottled color? I recently saw one and would like to add to our flock - looking for a good breeder who would be interested in selling me hatching eggs, young started birds, or a mature pair.
Thanks!

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

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YES, black mottled are fairly common
as for other mottled colors, they come in blue mottled, millie fluer (and all various color of them) porcelain (which is a lavender millie) also cream mottled, dun mottled, and a few others but those are super rare

 

[Gypsylion]

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Not sunburned so much as just sun bleaching, from what I've read. The same happened to the white in my black mottled cochin roo's hackle and saddle feathers. It seems that something about the morphology of those rooster hackle/saddle feathers seems to make them susceptible to that (unlike the hen feathers).

It's not a DQ, but it's considered a color fault as far as I know.

Does that mean that this is sex linked? My birchen and mottled cochin roos both yellow in the sun, but the hens don't. ????? Very curious?????

Not quite... which is to say, I believe the shape of the molecules of the feather are different between the stiffer/thicker hackle and saddle feathers and other body feathers, thus the sun bleaching has to do with the molecular shape of the hackle/saddle feathers more than the fact that usually only males get those types of feathers. So yes it's sex-related because usually only males get those feathers, but that's different from saying that the gene that codes for hackle/saddle feathers is sex-linked.

The term "sex-linked" officially means that there's a genetic trait that exists on either the X or Y chromosome. I don't know for sure if this is true for chickens (but I think so), but where female mammals have two X chroms (homozygous) and males an X and a Y (heterozygous), in birds the male is the homozygous. Here's the wikipedia page on sex linkage for more info.

 

[lilcrow]

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Does that mean that this is sex linked? My birchen and mottled cochin roos both yellow in the sun, but the hens don't. ????? Very curious?????

Not quite... which is to say, I believe the shape of the molecules of the feather are different between the stiffer/thicker hackle and saddle feathers and other body feathers, thus the sun bleaching has to do with the molecular shape of the hackle/saddle feathers more than the fact that usually only males get those types of feathers. So yes it's sex-related because usually only males get those feathers, but that's different from saying that the gene that codes for hackle/saddle feathers is sex-linked.

The term "sex-linked" officially means that there's a genetic trait that exists on either the X or Y chromosome. I don't know for sure if this is true for chickens (but I think so), but where female mammals have two X chroms (homozygous) and males an X and a Y (heterozygous), in birds the male is the homozygous. Here's the wikipedia page on sex linkage for more info.

Very cool!

This is fascinating stuff. Thanks a bunch for that link! I would say you're right on with the chickens vs. mammals, since for the most part in the world of genetics law is law whether it's poultry or peas. However, I got a real comeuppance in my early days of discussion when I thought that equine genes and poultry genes acted the same way, i.e., black vs. red gene. In horses the black gene is strictly dominant to the red gene - very simple. Well, I now know of course that couldn't be further from the truth with chickens! I thought horses were difficult, HA!

This is a whole nother bailiwick.
Thanks again Gypsylion.
Nancy

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

yep, it can get all mixed up in a hurry on your with poultry cant it!

 

[Barred Rocks forever]

i love my black mottled duccles
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[Gypsylion]

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There were a couple of breeders offering black mottled d'uccle hatching eggs on ebay this spring/summer. They shouldn't be horribly hard to find next spring.

 

[acid_chipmunk]

I am so excited! Just got home from Nationals with my new d'Uccles! A pair of Goldnecks from wegotchickens and two pair of black mottleds from dbunni!

I will try to get some pics of them tomorrow. I am so exhausted from being up since 3:45 and I have to work in the morning, so I am headed to bed.

 

[Gypsylion]

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[lilcrow]

Oh if that's the GN that I saw in the sale pen, I'm GREEN! That little cockerel is a cutie and if he matures out anything like her show-bird.......WOW!!!

Folks, I'm making a very difficult and heartbreaking decision, but one that I must. I've run up against this several times in the past year and denied it each time, but I can no longer ignore this......................I must let go of my d'Uccle.

If anyone is interested, or you know of anyone, please let me know. My cock bird went 3rd out of 9? I believe, and my hen went 4th out of ??, can't remember, a bunch, (she has gone BB before). Both had broken foot feathering, so I think they would have done better if their feet were better. I also have another very nice hen, and a pullet that is by the cock and out of one of the hens or possibly one other that I no longer have.
I have a pair of lavenders that are quite nice and have good feather, however they could use some help with their foot feathering (genetically). Bred to each other, I think they would do OK, but possibly bred to a MF to improve this foot feathering trait, then the offspring bred back to each other (splits) this could make a significant improvement in type. I was REALLY looking forward to making these crosses and watching the outcome. I also have a pair of young porcelains that I think have the potential to be nice. The price on all of these birds is very negotiable, the primary issue for me is they end up in a good home where they will be safe, well cared for and their well being is an important consideration.
I put this here rather than on the auction page for the obvious reason, I love my birds first and the money is secondary.

As I said, this is very hard for me to do, however there comes a time when one must accept certain facts of life and reality. I'm a 1 person operation, living on a fixed income. I'm 62 and when I need a new coop or run or both, it's on me to build it. Quite simply, my wants exceed my ability and resources.
When I begin to see something slipping because I'm too exhausted

to keep up, it's time to cut back.
The birds come first!

If you're interested, curious or otherwise, ask me anything.

Nancy