How do you sex Cuckoo Marans ?

[FrenchToast]

Are Cuckoo Marans able to be sexed as chicks? I have eleven 4 week olds. About half are lighter and have combs very apparent and the other half are darker with really no developing combs?
Are they sexable by the light/dark coloring?

Thanks

 

[Gallusfarm]

Yes. The females are darker and the males will be lighter.

here are some hatchery birds - in this photo the girl is really dark - on the left with back to us. The boy is either the one looking at us or the one beside - one was a BR. Not sure which was which now, but the rule is the same for Cuckoo Marans, BR and Dominiques.

 

[FrenchToast]

Quote:
Great !!!! I have 6 roos and 5 hens !!!
Thanks for the info.

 

[Gypsy07]

Yup, the cuckoo marans girls should be much darker than the boys. The girls should be dark grey with light grey spots whereas the boys should look like barred rocks. But it's not 100%. I have a CM roo who feathered out every bit as dark as my CM girl. I've been told that it's not ideal colouring and so I won't be breeding from him, but apart from that he's a lovely big boy.

The comb and wattles thing was very accurate for me though. The boys combs were noticeably bigger when they were just a couple of weeks old, and their wattles started growing a week or so later. They're 14 weeks old now and the girls still have almost no combs at all...