Help identifying this cockerel

[Floof]

I'm thinking of picking up this cockerel for breeding in the spring. My goal this year is to make easter egger sex links so I'm hoping to get an ameraucana (ideally splash but I'm not willing to drive hours or spend $$$ so I'll take what I can get). Would you guys say this is a blue or self blue ameraucana? The lady offering him up says blue but he seems very light to me.

 

[EmmaRainboe]

Looks like a lavender(self blue) to me, but you can get blues who are really light. I just think there would be more varying colors if he were blue.

@FuzzyCritters You're my trusted genetics person (lol) what do you think?

 

[Northwest_Wannabe]

Does she breed Ameraucanas? Can you ask her where she got him or who his parents were? I've seen some really light blues however he does look a little like a self blue/lavender, knowing his parents would help

 

[FuzzyCritters]

Looks like a lavender(self blue) to me, but you can get blues who are really light. I just think there would be more varying colors if he were blue.

@FuzzyCritters You're my trusted genetics person (lol) what do you think?

I agree on Lavender. He has kind of that silvery sheen lavenders get, and he looks too light to be a blue. No splash markings either.

 

[Quaicken108]

Cool goals! I think that he’s a bit light to be a blue because those Roos usually have some darker feathers but I think you’re right with self blue which is lighter.

 

[Floof]

Does she breed Ameraucanas? Can you ask her where she got him or who his parents were? I've seen some really light blues however he does look a little like a self blue/lavender, knowing his parents would help

I'm not sure what all the details are, just that she got eggs from someone she trusts has real ameraucanas but doesn't want to keep the male that hatched. From her photos I did see a splash hen so maybe she had b/b/s genes from those eggs.

 

[Floof]

BBS wouldn’t change anything....it’s not “way better.”
He will put out, when mated with a BR, black pullets and barred cockerels.

What I said was that I understand BBS better, as in I have read the information on how those genes express. I am less familiar with lavender but understand that they do not work the same way at all.

 

[TheOddOneOut]

What I said was that I understand BBS better, as in I have read the information on how those genes express. I am less familiar with lavender but understand that they do not work the same way at all.

Ah, ok. Sorry I misunderstood, I read that wrong.
Lavender, when mixed with most other colors, puts out black - try some crosses with this chicken calculator. https://kippenjungle.nl/kruising.html

 

[Egghead_Jr]

It does change what the offspring would be. The OP is correct in believing it's a test mating that would determine if this bird carries LAV or Blue. I believe it's blue. In mating with black bird the resulting blue chicks will have darker feathering.

If blue about 50% of chicks will be blue, rest will be black.
If LAV then all chicks will be black.
In either case all cockerels hatched will have barring. Sex links. It will be difficult to spot the white head spots on light blue cockerels.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

LAV isn't hard to understand. It's recessive gene that inhibits black. One copy does not express, two copies makes for lavender. Blue is a dominant gene that stacks. One copy of the gene express' blue. Two copies express splash. It stacks in it's ability to inhibit black.