How did we get black chicks from White Leghorn x Rir??????

[warmfuzzies]

OK< I just got done incubating eggs for a friend. She had penned up her RIR hen, white leghorn hen, and white leghorn rooter together for about two weeks before collecting eggs.

Here is what we got: About half each black and white. Some of the white ones have black spots, and two of the black ones look maybe dark brown, but the others are definitely black.

she does not have ANY black roos! She has two leghorns, one BO and one EE roo. And, the weirdest part! One of the black ones came from a white egg!

 

[silkiechicken]

Where's the pics!

I think both the colors black and white can hide other colors, but that is interesting since leghorns are for sure white white. It will be interesting the chick adult colors.

 

[warmfuzzies]

My Camera's broken.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Why would a black chicken hatching from a white egg be weird?

Obviously the black chicks did not inherit white from their parents. At a guess, both leghorns are het for dominant white. The black chicks got luck of the draw and didn't inherit the gene from either parent.

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

The leghorns are most likely a hybrid, and not a true white leghorn. Some hatcheries do crosses with certain strands of good egg layers to get ones that lay better than the parents.

I know Ideal has their own strain of hybrid leghorns that are white with black spots as chicks.

 

[retiredwithchicks]

I have hatched a white with black, looking almost like a Delaware from a white leghorn and EE rooster or RIR rooster. They are the only two roosters I have. They are beautiful.

 

[warmfuzzies]

Quote:
Because it was supposed to be one of the eggs that was pure leghorn.


Thank you all for your replies. The chickens were from Welp, that is all I know. Come to find out, after the yellow chicks dried, they almost all have black spots on them. So, that must be it. Thanks for your help!

 

[CovenantCreek]

I think there are some Leghorns that carry the dominant white gene, which can hide the black gene. Two dominant white Leghorns, each hiding a color other than white, could then produce non-white offspring. I suppose it's possible that one of them carries black and the other might have brown hidden by the white.

 

[jenjscott]

What hasn`t been addressed yet is the fact that they were only penned up two weeks, and hens can carry sperm up to three weeks. What color is the EE and You may have your answer.

 

[warmfuzzies]

Yes, Jenjscott I wondered about that. I told her to wait longer...

The EE roo is white and cream with black on his tail.