Easter Egger hatch egg color

[Justhatched]

Summer 2012 I purchased fertile eggs. I was told they were Ameracauna but I don't think so. That's not a problem. I just wanted blue/green eggs. My girls are 29 weeks old and haven't started to lay yet. Would they lay the same color egg they were hatched in?

 

[sumi]

I can't tell you about the egg colour, but I did hear EE's sometimes take their sweet time to start laying. One EE hen I heard of only started laying aged 8 months! Keep in mind the days are short now and most hens need around 14 hours of light per day to keep them laying, so yours may wait 'till Spring.

Look at their comb colour, if starts to turn red they are getting there and you can also do the "finger test" to see if they're getting ready. Look in my signature for the hens-not-laying link. I've put some pics up there showing how to do the finger test and what it tells you.

 

[redsoxs]

That's a good question. I don't know enough about poultry genetics to answer that. The delay in the laying is probably linked to the reduced daylight of winter. I have 18 hens and I'm lucky to get 5 eggs most days. I'm fortunate in that two of my 4 EEs are among the layers. Days are getting longer now, though, so I am hoping they will all pick up the pace. Good luck to you!

 

[Eggzausted]

I added 3 easter eggers to my flock this year,someone told me his were laying brown eggs so I wasn't sure if mine were all laying or not as I was only getting brown eggs from the flock of youngsters.I seperated the EE and put a light on in the barn.After a week they started laying and haven't stopped,plenty of green eggs to give to kids.

 

[Eggzausted]

But as to the original question I too would like to know how the egg color is passed down ,through the rooster or hen?

 

[sumi]

I had a quick look to see what I can find for you and I think this may help answer your question:

http://alanbishop.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=home&action=print&thread=5115

(Read the post below the pic of the Leghorn hen)

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

The general rule of thumb when choosing hatching eggs for color is to hatch from the best example of that color egg you can find. For Ameraucana, you want to hatch from the bluest egg you can find, for Marans from the darkest brown egg, etc.

The blue egg gene is dominant over other egg colors, and it doesn't matter if it came from the rooster or the hen. If the hatching eggs you purchased are blue, then you know for sure that at least one parent (hen) carries the blue egg gene.

Homozygous means two copies of a gene, heterozygous means one copy of one gene and one copy of a different gene.

Here are the possibilities (I'm assuming that your hatching eggs are blue or green):

1. You have Ameraucana X Ameraucana eggs, resulting homozygous hens carry two blue egg genes, you get blue or greenish-blue eggs.
2. You have Ameraucana X ? eggs. Resulting heterozygous hens carry at least one blue egg gene. You get either green or blue eggs, depending on what they're mixed with. Birds will be EEs.
3. You have EE X EE eggs. Resulting hens are either homozygous or heterozygous, depending on what genes were passed down. Extremely good chance of getting at least one blue egg gene in the resulting hens. High probability that you get blue or green eggs, smaller possibility of getting brown or pink or other color eggs if the genetic lottery doesn't go your way and you don't get a blue egg gene passed to the offspring. If you get birds that don't have pea combs and/or muffs, that's a very good sign that they'll lay brown eggs.
4. You have EE X ? eggs. All offspring will probably be heterozygous. About a 50% chance of resulting hens carrying the blue egg gene and laying eggs that are either blue or green. Again, watch for birds that don't have pea combs and/or muffs, that's a very good sign that they'll lay brown eggs. Pea combs and muffs are very strongly linked to the blue egg gene.

 

[Justhatched]

Thank you.

 

[pips&peeps]

I have found that if you use a cock bird with the blue egg gene you are more likely to get blue eggs than a brown egg layer cock bird over blue egg laying hens.