Green egg layers

[mener6896]

I definitely DIDN'T want to post this under breeds, genetics, as I knew I'd get lots of remarks about mixed breeds. I've wanted more hens that lay green/blue eggs, I don't really care about genetics, it just makes my customers happy. I recently lost a ton of my laying flock to coyotes, so I asked a friend for a dozen of her green/blue eggs to hatch. I realize my genetic odds are at best 25% since we aren't certain of the roos.

..my question is this: 6 chicks have hatched already. 3 of them definitely have aracauna features, and have the dark eye paint. However, they don't have the dark legs. Is it possible for them to end up laying green/blue eggs with light legs, or must they have the darker legs for those colored eggs?

 

[dretd]

First of all, I am really sorry to hear about you loss to the coyotes--very sad.

I am not sure of the linkage of leg color with the egg color--EE usually have a willow green leg. I know that some have said that pea combs are indicitave of blue/green egg coloration in EEs. My EE that lays tinted eggs has what looks like a pea comb from a distance, but looks like a small tortuous straight comb close up.

From what I understand, the 'blue' egg gene is Dominant. If the egg you are hatching from is green, the hen must have at least one copy of the blue gene, and may have two if its looks pretty blue (but could be a blue+white gene). If the egg is olive or really more green, she probably has a brown gene overlying the blue making it green.

So logically, following standard genetics:
If the Roo has one copy of the blue egg gene and the hen's egg is green, there will be at least a 75% chance the offspring will carry the blue egg gene (I say at least because if he has 2 copies of the blue gene it may be 100%):

Here is a Punnett Square of the genotype
Hen
Blue Brown
_______________________
Roo / blue | Blue /blue blue/Brown
|
/brown |Blue/brown Brown/brown

Since only 1 gene out of two is required for the phenotype (what the chick's eggs eventually look like) to be expressed, 3/4 of the chicks will have blue or green eggs.

Scenerio 2:
If the roo is a brown egg layer, the chicks have a 50/50 chance of inheriting the blue gene. (If she has 2 copies of the blue gene then 100% of the offspring will have blue genes):

Hen
Blue Brown
_______________________
Roo /brown| Blue /brown brown/Brown
|
/brown |Blue/brown Brown/brown


Now this is all assuming that the blue gene is a straight dominant gene.

Hopefully someone with more knowledge of leg color as related to egg color can add to the discussion.

 

[rebelcowboysnb]

I dont think its 100% linked to anything else. I think picking pea comb roos will more likely have the green gene but not all. If you hatch green eggs though, most if not all should lay some shade of green.

 

[mener6896]

I could be a little color blind

but they were kind of aqua blue eggs, so I am hoping they will lay that color egg!! Thanks for the genetic lesson, I always thought it was more leg color, which explains a lot about my current layers.