Marans or BSL?

[SunAngel]

I have been waiting for these 3 black chicks to feather out some, hoping for some help in id'ing them. They are starting to get some rusty colors coming in on their wings and chests. No green legs, so I ruled out EE's, legs are black with pinkish/yellow toes. Going by combs and weight, I think I have 2 little roos and a pullet. With the rust coloring I was thinking Black Sex Links, but yesterday I saw someones pics of their Copper Marans chicks, is it possible these could be Marans?

Sorry for the cruddy pics. Don't know why my camera refuses to take good pics of chickens!

 

[SunAngel]

So, do I take it that by no response, that either these 3 dont look like anything anyone has seen and are probably mixes, my pics are too fuzzy to tell what they are or all black chicks look alike and I have to wait awhile yet?

The added rusty red feathers in the chest and wings, and the black legs with pink/yellow toes, made me think someone would know what these lil chickies are.

I will wait til they feather more and try again!

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

Where did you get them from? Sometimes it helpd to narrow it down that way.
Say, for instance you bought your chicks at the local farm supply store. If you know that the store gets all it's chicks from a single hatchery, you can then go to that hatchery's website and look.
If you think you have Marans and the hatchey doesn't raise that breed you can rule that one out. If the hatchery does carry BSL then you might be on to something.
Hope this helps a little.

 

[SunAngel]

I wish I was lucky enough to know where they came from originally, but no such luck.

I bought a box with 8 chicks in it at a local poultry auction, just so my little 1 winged chick would have friends. I think some of the ones in the box were EEs, but these 3 black ones looked more like normal black breed chicks. I just can't figure out which ones, and now that they are getting rusty colored feathers, I hoped it would make it easier to figure out, but guess not lol. They could just be barnyard mixes I suppose.

 

[SunAngel]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/11818_marans_2_weeks_018.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3250/2748582794_9c49c9b418.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3238/2791537362_cd009b4b59.jpg

These were some of the chicks I saw in another thread that made me start thinking my 3 looked like Marans. Mine just have no leg feathering. I thought I saw somewhere that they can be clean legged also?

 

[summerb76]

I have 3 black sex link chicks. They looked alot like yours, same feet and leg color. I THINK marams get a sort of green tint to the feathers unlike sex links who only get the copper color. So I say yours are black sex links. Dont hold me to it, I'm no expert though.

 

[newnanchic]

If they were true Black Copper Marans they would have feathered feet and legs And would have cost you alot of money . They are cute !!! I wish you luck on finding out what kind they are .

 

[the simple life]

I have 6 black sex links and three of them are black with green sheen and some have a purple sheen, the other three have the copper/orange color around their necks.
I only see one picture of your chick and at this stage of development I guess it could be either, I have raised both breeds since day old chicks.
But black copper marans are not cheap and I would be surprised if they sold at an auction like that, unless either someone did not know what they had, were crossed with something else or it was not a good example of the breed since the coppers while they can have clean shanks its far more desirable to have feathered shanks.
I am going to say its a black sex link. I have both breeds and one cost WAY more money thank the other and they look the same, except for the feathered shanks.
The coppers also lay a far more darker egg than the BSL, or at least they should.

 

[SunAngel]

BLS was my first guess as well, but then I couldn't find any pics of BSL chicks that looked like mine, except boy chicks and this one definitely isn't a boy. People were posting pics of their Copper Marans and it made me wonder. I don't have a preference really, just curious. It seems like the other chicks that were in the box might be Wheaten Ameraucanas, so who knows.

Here is a more current pic of the girl I kept. She is 6 weeks old now.

 

[onthespot]

She does not look like a copper black marans. The color on her neck shows the lighter color outlining the black. In the copper blacks the reddish color is more like little streaks running down the center of the feather, like streaks. Nice looking girl though.