french marans....

[ajcress]

Ok I have a question. I am curious about the maran breed. I am curious about how you get the different colors. I read on the internet that the brown-red marans were the chickens that laid the darkest of all the marans. I thought that the BCMs laid the darkest. I would also like to know why these eggs are so expensive to buy considering the shipping elements and hatchability??? I would love to attempt to raise a nice "back yard flock" of marans for my son to gather eggs because they are different and the eggs are soooo beautiful.

 

[Goose and Fig]

Yes- they are extremely expensive- but for a few reasons that I can't explain very well. If you want dark egg layers you could get some Welsummers- they are easier to find, and more affordable I have found.

 

[Byrdj]

Brown Reds and Black Coppers are the same. They are called Brown Reds in France and Black Coppers in the U.S. They are so expensive because the BC's lay the darkest egg of any chicken breed and they still aren't available from commercial hatchery. The prices have dropped dramatically and will continue to drop as the supply increases.

 

[amazondoc]

As has already been mentioned, "brown red" and "black copper" are just two different labels for the same thing.

As for the expense -- it's a big fad right now, and that drives prices up. In a few years the prices will come back down to reasonable levels.

If you are new to chickens and you just want some pretty eggs, go with Welsummers. They are nice birds that lay attractive dark and often speckled eggs, and they don't have the hysteria surrounding them that Marans do. And if you do decide to get Marans, do your homework first! There are a LOT of people trying to cash in on the fad, so you reaaaaally need to be careful in selecting whom you purchase from.

 

[skeeter9]

You could also get Cuckoo Marans. They aren't as in demand as the other colors, but the eggs are typically nice and dark. You can get good bloodlines with dark eggs for very reasonable prices. Either way, Wellsummers or Cuckoo Marans, you will have nice chickens and beautiful eggs if you get your hens from dark egged bloodlines.

 

[onthespot]

I don't expect the price for high quality, correct colored Copper Black Marans to come down in the near future. So far my breeding experience has been such that I think demand will outstrip supply for years to come for birds that meet the Standard Of Perfection description AND consistently lay a dark egg.

There will be lots of dark laying feather legged birds for sale or eggs from those birds, but I am betting a LOT of them will be off colored, straw hackled, side sprigged, white earlobed, clean legged, white feathers in wings, wrong eye colored, too many tips on combs, wrong leg colored, sport throwing, you name it many faulted birds, eggs of varying shades of brown, that often do not breed true even if they hatch from dark eggs.

 

[2txmedics]

Ok, I have a question...whats the difference between a Maran and a Copper Maran, A French Maran?

Reason Im asking is I have 3 marans...one is a

blue maran...?

splash maran

and another one but not sure what....


and a new 1mo old am told french cuckoo maran...has feathers on legs, I call him BOOTS

 

[walkswithdog]

I'll leave answering to people actually working in the breed already.

I do have a question though, if a pullet in juvenille feather has white wing feathers - will it have that after the first moult? Is that a bird worth keeping?

Also she has reddishness in these first feathers on her body - is that also a bad sign? Anyone have a link to juvenille mossiness and is that it?

Figures the only one that managed to hatch would be scaring me.

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
First, there is no such thing as a "Maran". The word ALWAYS has an "s" at the end -- Marans.

"Marans" is the breed.
"Black Copper (not just "Copper") Marans" is one of the color varieties of Marans.
"French Marans" means a Marans that is bred to the French standard, or in general a Marans with feathered legs.

I hope this helps!

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
Cher, if it's a black copper or other predominantly black variety, they often have some white in their feathers when they're youngsters. Don't panic until after the first adult molt.

Also she has reddishness in these first feathers on her body - is that also a bad sign? Anyone have a link to juvenille mossiness and is that it?

Figures the only one that managed to hatch would be scaring me.

I *think* this is a bad sign, but I don't know enough about young black coppers to know for sure. So I'll give you the same advice as above -- don't panic til after the first adult molt.

Good luck!​