International Black Copper Marans Thread - Breeding to the SOP

[Braxton Brigade]

you have to lear to make a difference between your hens eggs . it is very important for selective breeding .
if you don t know how is a mom than how are you going to select?

each hen normally certain type of egg( shape /form and color) .

isolate each hen in a meter square cage for a week to see har egg and custom to them . like that you will know witch egg come from witch hen..

I know all my 40 breeders hens eggs by heart . I did spend a lot time tracking them down before the breeding season start . one of the reason I start this year late ,the move and I didn t have a time to catch the hens to check on them .

chooks man

Oh yes, I do know which eggs belong to which hens/pullets of all my birds.

I don't intend to do any serious breeding until spring time, I have a little "breeder coop" that hold about 3 full grown birds. I will be using that to more selectively breed in the spring.

#1 on my agenda is to breed my cockerel to his 2 sisters and hatch out as many chicks from the 3 of them as I can house. Then breed their best chicks together so I know what all they do or don't carry, am I correct?

 

[Braxton Brigade]

I m not saying the penguiny type don t colors up nicely .
what I m saying they are the ones who carries the white feather genes. especially if they have too much white on they wings and face .

they should have a white only on they bally ,chest ,and the tip of they wings.

when chis only the white on the tip of the wings is normal .all the other presence of white ( even if does goes away after molting ) on the chest or any other part of the body are parasitic and should be bred out.

Look at this 2 chicks Blue copper marans . the one on the left has a correct color down .the one on the Right is a penguin type NOT correct too much white.

chooks man

yeah there isa lot marans trait we can select for as chicks ;
1) type = we keep a chunky chick and we cull the skinny one.
2) less white possible ( only under the bally and chest ,tip of they wings )
3) strait legs and well spaced ..
4) healthy ,robust chick.
5) physical defect .
6) recessive melanin . black comb / wattles and toes nails ..
7) long chick (long back ) NOT a square chick .
8) short legs chick NOT a taller legs .
9) blue/green eyes Not a black /brown eyes.
10) chicks with a brown dot on they head sign of purity of a BCM strain .are a keepers .

chooks man

Is penguin down preferred with marans chicks? Do they generally feather out differently?

Chooks man, how can you tell the chick with the light beak is male?

Thanks!

Above is Chooks man's advice about chicks that are penguiny last time I asked.
Even added a post about selecting chicks.

I too am intrigued by the connection a light beak and it's gender being related, maybe I am missing something. I think it is a cockerel just because of it's attitude though.

 

[bullets]

That's great! Thanks Braxton! Waiting for chooks response on the light beak chick as well :]

 

[Chooks man]

Oh yes, I do know which eggs belong to which hens/pullets of all my birds.

I don't intend to do any serious breeding until spring time, I have a little "breeder coop" that hold about 3 full grown birds. I will be using that to more selectively breed in the spring.

#1 on my agenda is to breed my cockerel to his 2 sisters and hatch out as many chicks from the 3 of them as I can house. Then breed their best chicks together so I know what all they do or don't carry, am I correct?

that correct the F3 are inbred line .

I like to start my line with a F3 chooks .that mean I bred them F3,they parent F2, and grand parent F1 .

chooks man

 

[Chooks man]

Ah how do I know the light beak chick is a boy ? good question .

most of the marans varieties are affected with a Melanotic gene MI . you hear it all the time over melanized chook.

what it is the Melanotic gene MI ( when present) and mi+ ( when absent ,recessive ) ?

Melanotic gene=
1) Enhances black ( Melanizer).
2)Shift the black pigment .
3) Help to form pattern with other genes ( Co .Pg, Db )
4)Make a rusty animal more black .

Not always behaving dominant .

Ok what all that mean to us as marans breeders?
Black copper carry and they need the Melanotic MI gene . part of they genome.
the Melanotic is so many different type of Melanin ,each one does some thing special .

second part of the question ,most people miss is = why the MI genes behave so different between the 2 genders ?
Because of the presence of other gene ID ( Dermal Inhibitor ) .this genes prevent the deposit of Melanin into the Shank and Beak of the chooks .it is a gene which give the marans breed a pink or pinkish gray of the E .ER and e+ family genetic .
ID when present or id+ when absent is a sex linked gene ,mean the rooster have 2 copy and the hen just one . that is why the Black copper rooster have 2 MI so he must have a horn colored beak Not all black plus his feet are pinkish gray not all black . so 2 gene of ID will lighten some black part .
the black copper hen in other hand have only one ID . so no enough of it to prevent the deposit of certain Melanin like the rooster. that why they have a black beak and darker feet and is accepted by the French standard .

hope that help

chooks man

 

[Braxton Brigade]

Ah how do I know the light beak chick is a boy ? good question .

Very educational answer, Chooks.

that correct the F3 are inbred line .

I like to start my line with a F3 chooks .that mean I bred them F3,they parent F2, and grand parent F1 .

chooks man

Thank you.

 

[Red Banks]

Quote: Thank you Chooks man. Another "why" behind the SOP.

 

[dvoice]

Got my first egg from my growout pen
3 days shy of 5 months

 

[gimmie birdies]

BCM chick hatched yesterday, one more BCM egg under hen, along with 3 more blue isbars, blue isbar by the BCM in pic, chick to the front is SFH.

 

[Braxton Brigade]

Got my first egg from my growout pen
3 days shy of 5 months

Love the first eggs, so exciting!