Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[sjcshawna]

will wheaten marans breed true? Is this a maran color or a cross?

 

[sjcshawna]

Oh yeah i also forgot are they suppose to have light feathering down their legs, some birds i have seen with this and some are clean legged what is the standard for a maran?

 

[pinkchick]

If they are pure Wheatens Marans they will breed true and the standard is that Marans should have feathered shanks and a couple feathers on the outer toe.

Oh yeah i also forgot are they suppose to have light feathering down their legs, some birds i have seen with this and some are clean legged what is the standard for a maran?

 

[pinkchick]

Donna~

Sending great amounts of good hatching vibes out to those little buggers! C'mon chickies!!!

Debbi~ Can't wait to see some photos! Stay Warm!


Hi EVERYONE! Haven't been around lately...things have been...well things have just been. Hope everyone is doing great.
Talked with Mel the other day and he is doing good. He is saving me some Olive eggs for hatching.
Also, chatted with Ivywoods and she too is doing well. It was good to catch up with both peeps. I sure do miss alot of folks that used to hang out here in the thread.

Vicki~ Hatch day is creeping up my friend!

 

[pinkchick]

Wheaten is a color variety of Marans and is not a cross....but beware of the Wheatens that are products from BCM.
Wheatens that are produced from Black Copper Marans will not breed true and probably shouldn't be used for creating more Wheatens. Some lines of BCM throw and occasional Wheaten sport chick and they ("they" being the Wheaten sport) will not breed true.

will wheaten marans breed true? Is this a maran color or a cross?

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Question for you all about blue and blue copper Marans. I am quite confused about these. I understand the blue genetics--blue X blue gives blue, black, and splash. Where does the copper come into play? I bred a pair of blue copper Marans, kept 3 offspring. I have 1 cockerel that is blue copper. Another cockerel and a pullet show no signs of copper color as yet, they are almost 3 months old now. Will these stay all blue? And if you breed a Black Copper Marans cock with a blue or blue copper hen, will you get black, blue, and blue copper? or just black copper and blue copper? And, as if I didn't have enough questions,

is the dark egg color directly related to the black color gene--what I am wondering, if you get black coppers out of a black copper to blue copper or blue mating, will that black copper lay as dark an egg as a BCM produced from a black to black mating?

I've studied turkey color genetics, but the chicken genetics seems more complicated. Anybody have any favorite sites for chicken color genetics 101? Some of the sites I've visited seem too complicated, I need some basic background info to start. Thanks

Found this that explains the "copper" genetics - http://maransofamericaclub.com/blackcoppergenetics.php

And this on the Blue Coppers specifically - http://maransofamericaclub.com/bluemarans.php

 

[gilavina]

Donna~

Sending great amounts of good hatching vibes out to those little buggers! C'mon chickies!!!

Debbi~ Can't wait to see some photos! Stay Warm!


Hi EVERYONE! Haven't been around lately...things have been...well things have just been. Hope everyone is doing great.
Talked with Mel the other day and he is doing good. He is saving me some Olive eggs for hatching.
Also, chatted with Ivywoods and she too is doing well. It was good to catch up with both peeps. I sure do miss alot of folks that used to hang out here in the thread.

Vicki~ Hatch day is creeping up my friend!

Indeed....it is coming up much closer now! I'm feeling like its more manageable for me to be patient...especially since the hatcher arrived and is coming up to temp like a champ. I'll be using it for the hatching to see how it handles as well. Now all I'm waiting for is the 5 tier brooder to make its way over from Iowa. Then I will be set to go! I can't wait for the set up to be ready in the brooder room in the barn! I think my life will be so much easier than what i had to work with last year!



oh....do you think maybe...just maybe i like knowing what the temp is in the incubator and hatcher? That doesn't include the two temp gauges on the side....

 

[desertmarcy]

I did read those on the MOA club site, but somehow I am still confused

 

[pinkchick]

Marcy~

Your birds are all Copper no matter if you can see the copper or not. If they came from Copper parents then they have the gene in there...it's just that they have melanizers that are covering the copper that make them appear as though they do not have it. If you breed them they will still throw copper offspring but chances are the females will still be overly dark (too many melanizers) and most likely the males will be the ones that show copper. They will probably remain dark but it is possible that some day as they mature you will see some copper show and it can also take several months for some to show copper anyway. I have had roosters that are almost 2 years old still getting copper in. Don't be afraid to test mate them and to get some color back in the female offspring you can use a male that has a nice amount of copper and you should get some more color in the next gen.

The plumage color does not have anything to do with the egg color....however...it is known that Splash, Splash Copper, Blue and Blue Coppers and White Marans tend to lay a lighter colored egg...but they can also rival the Black Coppers egg color. I have a Splash Copper girl and some Blue Coppers that lay just as dark as the BCM...fact, my Splash girl has better egg color than a couple of my Black Coppers.

Hope this helps!

 

[BarnGoddess01]

I did read those on the MOA club site, but somehow I am still confused

Hang in there, desertmarcy. Keep reading and asking questions. I know from experience, it takes awhile but, it DOES eventually start to make sense.