Marans Thread for Posting Pics of Your Eggs, Chicks and Chickens

[amazondoc]

Yup, there will definitely be more added as time goes on.

 

[hcammack]

Quote:
So cute! I see a definite roo in the bottom pic! I have a batch due tomorrow.

Really...A Roo...I am new to marans so please tell me how you came to that conclusion.

Oh and good luck with your hatch

I agree do you see how the comb on the top of his head is a lighter pink color already and slightly bigger then the others? He is defently a little guy Marans can be sexed very early on. Welcome to the Marans world they are great and very friendly birds.

Henry

 

[Duckett5]

Hello everyone. I am new to the board although I have just read a good portion of this thread, and I am a new Black Copper Marans care giver.

I chose the BCM's because I liked the idea of having something in my area that not many others have. Also I love the color of the eggs. I also like what I have read about the temperment of these.

I purchased my eggs on Ebay (this was before I found this forum) and had a bad experience with my first batch. I had only 2 hatch out of 9. The seller was willing to send me more at a reduced rate so I agreed. When they hatched, 5 out 0f 9 this time, it was obvious that I didn't get what I wanted. They were obviously mixed since they were supposed to be BCM's and one of them looks like a wheaton. Also they are bare legged.

I ordered a second batch from another seller and had a 7 out of 9 hatch from them and the chicks are awesome, full feathered leggs and they appear to be textbook BCM's.

It's hard to know what you're getting from anyone, because of the high price of the eggs there are plenty of jerks out there willing to claim BCM's from a certian bloodline and send you something else.

Have any of you had strange color variations come from your BCM's when you are sure they were bred true? Or do you always get what you expect?

John in Idaho

 

[KellyHM]

I know people who have Wade Jeane 2nd generation lines that have had a wheaton chick or two pop up. Since it's a recessive trait it's hard to get rid of it completely.

 

[tfpets]

Quote:
Hi John!

You picked one of my favorite Marans varieties to start your journey into the Marans world! Here on this thread there are a diverse bunch of folks who have gotten our birds/eggs anywhere from ebay as you have to the more distinquished Nationally known breeders such as Bev Davis. One of the big debates is often the high price of eggs, rip offs, and uncertain claims of bloodlines or egg color. The fad will pass, and those in the "business" for money will fall on their faces...hopefully we will not lose too much in the quality of the birds in the meantime...Marans are a fine breed with a great history, and LOVELY dark brown eggs.
My favorite varieties are the Black Coppers, Blue Copper (Dont have yet), Wheaten (dont have yet) and the Cuckoo Marans.
Again, welcome, and enjoy...pull up a chair, post a few pics! We love to see those birds and eggs! This is a great thread to read and keep up with.
Tina/tfpets

 

[hcammack]

AHHHH I want some wheatens !!!!!!! I have cuckoos, a blue copper, and two black coppers! now I want some wheatens they are so beautiful.

 

[Duckett5]

Thanks for the welcome. I will post some pics soon. I just love the BCMs and want to keep the breed pure so I am dedicating my space and resources to just this one breed. It is annoying to think that I may have questionable stock to start with, although the second batch I hatched seems to be the real deal. I will have to proceed as though they are pure until I have a real reason to think otherwise. The seller claims Wade Jeane and Channing Grishams bloodlines.

In either case, I hope to share them with my local community and my new extended community here on BYC when it's possible. I'm not interested in trying to profit from them other than enjoying the eggs.

John in Idaho

 

[drom]

There's a lot being said about that on the forums right now and from what I am hearing and reading, it is not uncommon. I have heard a few different explanations on the topic. One person on a forum said a geneticist told him the Wheaten recessive exists in all BCs.
I have heard someone saying that a more leaky version of the gene exists in the more red-breasted BC roos and I have heard people who disagree with that point. It sounds like it might exist, or behave differently in the different lines and with perhaps different types of birds.

From all I can gather, with all the different varieties, these birds have a very complex genetic make-up and history. It is not that unusual to get a BC with Wheaten characteristics or what some people might call a sport.

There are other things, faults, that also seem to be rather common such as white feathers in adult birds, too vertical (squirrel) tails, golden or straw color hackles rather than the copper, slow feather gene, etc...
You're lucky if you got perfect birds this second time around, but I don't think any of the lines are perfect. Definitely, some breeders are much more scrupulous about culling color or other faults out of their line while other breeders are concentrating solely on egg color and are breeding more of what the French call "utility" birds; ones which don't meet the standard of perfection for showing, but produce very dark eggs.

If the first ones you got have some Wheaten characteristics and also don't lay very dark eggs, well then that's not so good. I suppose the important thing is what the breeder tells you about their birds and if they have mislead you in some way. I wouldn't buy eggs from anyone who I didn't have recommendations on and didn't know was an ethical breeder.

Some breeders breed clean legged birds. The British standard calls for clean legs and the French for feathered. The new US draft standard will call for feathered because that is apparently what the APA wants.

 

[Duckett5]

Quote:
Thanks for the info. When pressed, the seller of the first batch admitted that there are som solid black hens in with the coppers and that they are the clean legged variety but he wouldn't cop to the wheaton so maybe your explanation is the likely one.

I wouldn't make the same decision again in hindsight with blind purchasing on Ebay, but I wanted the breed and didn't want to wait on Bev's list. On Ebay you have to hope that the feedback rating tells the whole story. Most of the feedback tells you that the eggs arrived in good condition but not how the hatch went or what the results are.

It seems like I am in the right place now though and will try to learn what I can to do justice to this breed.

BTW, I like your BYC personal page. I will have to work on mine.

 

[drom]

Thanks. Welcome to the thread. Tina is correct as usual, there are a lot of fun people who post on this thread and love their Marans and have some great information.

Oh, just one more note on the sports- the varieties that the French Marans club web site states you should definitely never intentionally cross the BCs with are the Wheaten and the Black. They are apparently from different genetic families. So, obviously the more experienced breeders on the forums who talk about this problem with Wheatens showing up in BC clutches strongly recommend that the new breeders who see this come up should work to get it out of their line.