Green queen laid first egg

[Eggsandbeyond]

My green queen laid her first egg today and I was so excited to see the pretty color. Well its clearly white not even tinted in the slightest. Any chance it'll turn green as she lays more? My black copper marans egg darkened she was from the same brooder and she laid her first egg last week it was a light brown and now it's a deep chocolate brown. Am I just holding onto false hope?

 

[Devyn Nagy]

My green queen laid her first egg today and I was so excited to see the pretty color. Well its clearly white not even tinted in the slightest. Any chance it'll turn green as she lays more? My black copper marans egg darkened she was from the same brooder and she laid her first egg last week it was a light brown and now it's a deep chocolate brown. Am I just holding onto false hope?

You know, I have 4 Starlight Green Eggers, and one one of them lays green eggs! The other three lay dark brown speckled ones. So unfortunately it's very possible that that's just the color she'll give. But, time will tell!

 

[MysteryChicken]

My green queen laid her first egg today and I was so excited to see the pretty color. Well its clearly white not even tinted in the slightest. Any chance it'll turn green as she lays more? My black copper marans egg darkened she was from the same brooder and she laid her first egg last week it was a light brown and now it's a deep chocolate brown. Am I just holding onto false hope?

Green Queens are Easter Eggers, so getting other colored eggs like Brown, Tinted, & White will happen.

Mine lays green though, a very pretty green.

 

[GreenJay]

My green queen laid her first egg today and I was so excited to see the pretty color. Well its clearly white not even tinted in the slightest. Any chance it'll turn green as she lays more? My black copper marans egg darkened she was from the same brooder and she laid her first egg last week it was a light brown and now it's a deep chocolate brown. Am I just holding onto false hope?

Sorry to say If she laid a white egg, they'll always be white. The tint on a colored egg will be lighter or darker depending on the laying cycle but will not change color entirely (i.e. white to green).

 

[AinaWGSD]

Unfortunately, no. Brown eggs are white made brown by pigment that is laid down on the outside of the eggshell. When you crack a brown egg it's white on the inside. Blue eggs have pigment throughout the shell. When you crack a blue egg it's roughly the same color on the inside as outside (it may look lighter because of the membrane). Green eggs are blue eggs with brown pigment laid down on the outside of the shell.

Disappointing when you're hoping for green eggs, I know. But it's still a beautiful egg.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Brown eggs are white made brown by pigment that is laid down on the outside of the eggshell. When you crack a brown egg it's white on the inside.

Not entirely true, most brown eggs if you pull away the membrane are a shade of brown on the inside.

 

[AinaWGSD]

Not entirely true, most brown eggs if you pull away the membrane are a shade of brown on the inside. View attachment 3760793

Cool! I've never really paid attention to be honest and there's not nearly as much information out there on HOW eggs are different colors as there is on what breeds are better at laying different colors.

 

[Ridgerunner]

HOW eggs are different colors

There are two different genetic things going on. One gene pair determines what the base color will be, either blue or white. Blue is dominant so if just one of those two genes is Blue then the egg will be base blue. The blue gene affects the entire egg shell, it will be blue throughout. If both genes at that gene pair are not-blue the base color is white. This not-blue gene does not color the eggshell white. It allows the calcium in the eggshell to show its natural color, which is white. By cracking an egg you can easily see if the egg is base blue or base white.

Brown is mostly from pigment laid on the outside of the eggshell in the last half hour or so while the egg is in the shell gland. If the egg is laid early it can be lighter than normal so you can get some variation. Green is simply brown laid on a blue egg.

Base Blue + no Brown = Blue
Base Blue + Brown = Green
Base White + Brown = Brown
Base White + no Brown = White

There are at least 13 different genes that can affect the shade of brown, that's why you can get so many different shades of brown or green. Some of these genes are dominant, some recessive. At least one is sex-linked. One bleaches out some of the brown. Breeders breeding for white or blue eggs like this gene. Instead of laying down brown on top of the base color one gene can tint the entire thickness tan. That's what MysteryChicken is showing.

 

[Mrs. K]

The luck of the draw. I have a production red hen, and she lays a green egg. A very green egg! I know she should lay brown, but she doesn't, she didn't get the memo.