International Black Copper Marans Thread - Breeding to the SOP

[peachRN]

Hello,
I am a new member here but have been reading a lot of information over the last year. I have 7, 17 week old Black French Copper Maran Hens and 1 Cockerel.
I am hoping to hatch out some of their eggs, but understand this is difficult.
Last August (2025) i puchased some BFCM hatching eggs off ebay, this did not go well and none of them hatched, out of 12, at the same time i had great success with Buff Orpington and Rhode Island Red.

There are many different views, as far as i can work out the best results for Marans is the humidity to be 25-35% for the first 18 days and crank this upto 65% for the lockdown period. Is this correct? Sorry i know this has been gone over, just checking if there is any new information on this?
Many thanks!

I'm a first time hatcher this year, but I'm planning to hatch some BCMs in the next few months and after everything I've read, I'm going to do a dry hatch and then maybe add a bit of water at lockdown to bump humidity. From my understanding, the dark bloom on BCM eggs reduce the porosity and make it harder for gas exchange, and chicks end up drowning more frequently than other breeds.

When do you plan to set your eggs? I'd love to follow along

 

[Chooks man]

Hello,
I am a new member here but have been reading a lot of information over the last year. I have 7, 17 week old Black French Copper Maran Hens and 1 Cockerel.
I am hoping to hatch out some of their eggs, but understand this is difficult.
Last August (2025) i puchased some BFCM hatching eggs off ebay, this did not go well and none of them hatched, out of 12, at the same time i had great success with Buff Orpington and Rhode Island Red.

There are many different views, as far as i can work out the best results for Marans is the humidity to be 25-35% for the first 18 days and crank this upto 65% for the lockdown period. Is this correct? Sorry i know this has been gone over, just checking if there is any new information on this?
Many thanks!

I'm a first time hatcher this year, but I'm planning to hatch some BCMs in the next few months and after everything I've read, I'm going to do a dry hatch and then maybe add a bit of water at lockdown to bump humidity. From my understanding, the dark bloom on BCM eggs reduce the porosity and make it harder for gas exchange, and chicks end up drowning more frequently than other breeds.

When do you plan to set your eggs? I'd love to follow along

yes Marans eggs are different and do very well with dry incubation around 40% humidity , the difference is where about you live dry or humid pace so you can adjust the incubator recording to the humidity in your area , lot breeders in this thread are from different area in the US if you mention your area they will be able to help you better ,
chooks man

 

[Maranmad]

Hello Chooks man, we live in the UK, North Yorkshire, cold wet winters and 25/30c summer with plenty of rain. Although last summer was a heatwave with no rain for months. Humidity was easy to manage on my last hatch but no marans hatched only Orpington and RIR

 

[Maranmad]

I'm a first time hatcher this year, but I'm planning to hatch some BCMs in the next few months and after everything I've read, I'm going to do a dry hatch and then maybe add a bit of water at lockdown to bump humidity. From my understanding, the dark bloom on BCM eggs reduce the porosity and make it harder for gas exchange, and chicks end up drowning more frequently than other breeds.

When do you plan to set your eggs? I'd love to follow along

Thanks for replying, yes I am simular to yourself. So will post any updates. I plan when they start laying or a month or so after. I have 7 point of lay. So im impatiently waiting for my first egg! I just dont want to do trial and error as its 3 weeks each time so want to get it right first time. See what happens.

 

[BlueTheBrahma]

Hello Chooks man, we live in the UK, North Yorkshire, cold wet winters and 25/30c summer with plenty of rain. Although last summer was a heatwave with no rain for months. Humidity was easy to manage on my last hatch but no marans hatched only Orpington and RIR

I’ll try and think back to my hatches when I have used incubators, since I think I’m going to be the only one with comparable (aka the same) climate.

 

[BlueTheBrahma]

@Maranmad I’m not going to pretend I probably didn’t just lob water into the incubator and hope for the best most of the time (I actually left my incubator running while I was in Mablethorpe once so it may have been too low around hatching, I didn’t have fanatic success but not bad).

I think 30-35% is an ideal aim, though 50% in lockdown. Having a tad of ventilation in the incubator can be helpful in preventing it getting too stuffy in there, but keep your eye on it.

If you’re hatching them around now (though I assume you aren’t though as yours are too young to lay) the air has been very humid, at least up in Durham where I am at the moment, (though that’s because it’s colder so can’t hold as much) so drying up shouldn’t be too much of a worry.

Hope that helps, sorry I don’t have much experience to tell you much for certain.

 

[Bantambird]

My ambient humidity is usually kept between 20 and 30%. I add a second water tray for lockdown, but I keep all the vents open. To monitor humidity, I watch the air cells, I use the humidity number as a guideline and not a rule. I have learned that Marans do indeed drown easy if there is too much humidity during lockdown, so it is good to watch those air cells. I don't think my humidity gets above 50% on lockdown, but I haven't checked it in a long time, since I keep my settings pretty much the same every year, i just mark out air cell growth on a few of them to see how they develop. The ambient humidity in Montana is much MUCH lower in the region I am at than anywhere you might find in Brittania, however. If it were my Marans, I would probably dry hatch in such an environment and then add a tray of water for hatch but keep your vents open. Fresh air is super important during hatch.

 

[BlueTheBrahma]

My ambient humidity is usually kept between 20 and 30%. I add a second water tray for lockdown, but I keep all the vents open. To monitor humidity, I watch the air cells, I use the humidity number as a guideline and not a rule. I have learned that Marans do indeed drown easy if there is too much humidity during lockdown, so it is good to watch those air cells. I don't think my humidity gets above 50% on lockdown, but I haven't checked it in a long time, since I keep my settings pretty much the same every year, i just mark out air cell growth on a few of them to see how they develop. The ambient humidity in Montana is much MUCH lower in the region I am at than anywhere you might find in Brittania, however. If it were my Marans, I would probably dry hatch in such an environment and then add a tray of water for hatch but keep your vents open. Fresh air is super important during hatch.

I may have been too high with my estimate then. It was 92% humidity outside when I looked earlier.

 

[Chooks man]

Hello Chooks man, we live in the UK, North Yorkshire, cold wet winters and 25/30c summer with plenty of rain. Although last summer was a heatwave with no rain for months. Humidity was easy to manage on my last hatch but no marans hatched only Orpington and RIR

@BluetheBrahm can help you out .
chooks man

 

[Bantambird]

I may have been too high with my estimate then. It was 92% humidity outside when I looked earlier.

I have always wanted to visit the Isles someday, for the art, history, and decent cheeses, and to look for the place that my maiden name comes from. It is so damp, though, that I might just melt like sugar in tea.