He or she? Easter Eggers

[Alexandra33]

Agreed, first is a cockerel, simply based upon coloration.

~Alex

 

[PTA Chicks]

Agreed, first is a cockerel, simply based upon coloration.

~Alex

Please explain the colour comment? I don't know much about Easter Eggers. The babies are a mix between my black Ameracauna hen or my Lohmann browns and a reddish coloured male.

 

[annageckos]

Full body photos would help, from the side. But I agree, the first looks like a cockerel. You really need to breed to be able to feather sex chicks, only in certain breeds/crosses is it reliable. Some people think it can be done with any bird but the genetics just aren't there. Remember, you have a 50/50 shot of being right anyway. But the first bird looks to have male specific coloring. His color is very patchy and he looks to have red wing bars. They are a bit too young to be showing saddle or hackle feathers right now.

 

[Frazzemrat1]

Please explain the colour comment? I don't know much about Easter Eggers. The babies are a mix between my black Ameracauna hen or my Lohmann browns and a reddish coloured male.

Cockerels/roosters, especially mix breed cockerels/roosters, tend to have brighter, more flashy coloring than their female counterparts. Those bright orange wing bars on the gray is a sure indicator of gender. A female would never have that. It goes back to their roots... A female sitting on the nest has to be camouflaged so that a predator doesn't eat her and/or the young she's brooding. The male's job is to breed and protect, and part of that protection is leading predators away from his young. You have to be flashy for that, and to attract mates.

 

[Fueron]

A female would never have that.

Not never!

 

[BugMunch]

I agree with the rest...1st one is cockerel and the rest pullets

 

[PTA Chicks]

Cockerels/roosters, especially mix breed cockerels/roosters, tend to have brighter, more flashy coloring than their female counterparts. Those bright orange wing bars on the gray is a sure indicator of gender. A female would never have that. It goes back to their roots... A female sitting on the nest has to be camouflaged so that a predator doesn't eat her and/or the young she's brooding. The male's job is to breed and protect, and part of that protection is leading predators away from his young. You have to be flashy for that, and to attract mates.

That's really interesting,thanks for explaining.
S/he has definitely got more red in the feathers as s/he got older.