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

[Resolution]

Well there are many ways to skin a brat. In my opinion, you breed for egg colour first and primarily and then you breed for conformation of physical appearance. Its a great deal easier to select for the latter- and much more difficult to fix the egg. But as I mentioned in France, the farms producing the darkest eggs are not at all concerned with the appearance of the birds save for their general health. Like any farm with two hundred hens all of the same breed and colour- I'm sure there must have been some beauty queens there but by and large -they just looked like chickens. The emphasis on these flocks has always been egg colour- and then of course the phenotype last. I wrote somewhere earlier about snooty purists in France- but was only paraphrasing what Madame - expressed to me through her interpreter. There need to be rigorous standards and some people are able to breed for both simultaneously.

For example, if I were to only incubate eight eggs out twenty laid by five hens and only four of those eggs were Chart Hue Seven; one egg Chart Hue Nine and three falling between Cart Hues 4-6- and Eight chicks hatched.

So eight eggs of sufficiently dark eggs hatched. Each chick is given a dab of melted crayon wax on the top of its head at hatching time so that the origin is clear as day.
I've saved the eggshell piece in my egg diary... In a few days I get a sense of which are male and which are female. The males hatched from the very darkest eggs will get an additional crayon wax identification spot (new colour) as will the females naturally. As the birds mature, the males with the best conformity - and lets say just five roosters hatched-
the birds with the best conformity can be conserved for future selective breeding- but unless it hatched from the darker eggs its not ideal. Its more ideal than the males that would have been born of eggs that you didnt hatch, but he's still not ideal. But anyway, what I'm trying to say here is -you can be very selective in which of this years hatch to breed from late this summer- but choose egg shell colour it hatched from as your first determinant- certain colour varieties will tend produce darker eggs but we've all seen exceptions -so just focus on egg shell colour at this phase.
That's the rate of mutation that you can see and there is very little else at work at this level. Physical and plumage conformations- that's the icing on the cake-
You may be very fortunate and discover that you have a rooster that's hatched with perfect conformation from a Chart Hue Six egg. Better to keep a close eye on the conformation of the hens anyway because the son takes after the mother- generally speaking- especially in shape -so if you have two roosters hatch from two eggs of the Same Chart Hue- pick the one with the best conformation or colour- but if its a toss up -always pick the sire that hatched from the darkest egg.
And people -UC Davis utilized this selection regime with some Rhode Island Reds - they effected the expression of egg colour dramatically in just five generations.

 

[Germaine_11.20]

Let me tell you how wonderful you are. You are. Thank you very much!!

 

[lildinkem]

I agree, I am not too sure what to think of Resolution's post.
I know chickens have been domesticated for thousands of years. And the main predator role being played here is me. I agree that the genetics in the paler or liter eggs should be very close to those genes in darker eggs. I hatch a few out of the liter eggs pullets to raise and see what color that given pullet lays. Knowing the color of the egg gene is carried by the cockerel/Roo, or so I read. And I want to see this first hand. With the next generation. So, I do hatch an egg or two from all my girls. And all of my cockerels. With other varieties of chickens, I have taken to tippy top quality cockerel, that won a show, not just a best of breed, to another very high quality pullet, to only produce lack luster quality offspring. And the same pullets I took to a $6 Roo, who has noticeable production blood, that breeding produce VERY HIGH QUALITY offspring. So who is to say what bird will produce the desired look in a given breeding. It just MIGHT be the borderline quality birds that give you your best quality birds.

 

[Resolution]

Understood, the selective breeding strategy is designed to remove all extraneous hatchings. In modern days we have the luxury of incubators and electricity that never shuts off mid day ( or rarely ). We can go purchase a few dozen eggs to eat or keep dozens of chickens. Placing the Marans within the context of its cultural origins, the humble farmers of these mudflats simply could not afford such privilege. To set a single egg aside for incubation was a sacrifice for the kitchen. The amount of energy that a single woman or man might put into hatching a half dozen perfect eggs was remarkable- without incubators- without brooders- so this methodology focuses on quality over quantity. There are no or very few culls in acute selection processes. And again, chickens may have been domesticated for thousands of years, but their capacity to lay eggs of variable pigmentation within clutches has been hard wired for literally tens of millions of generations. Our selection has been acute -to just create a domestic chicken to begin with- and more severe to select for traits we find desirable- but we are not selecting for anything that has not existed in the wild ancestors- for example- we do not have chickens that lay magenta or chrome silver eggs.

 

[millebantam]

rustyswoman, you should never have to apologize for a "lack of knowledge" concerning these BCM's. The fact of the matter is that NOBODY knows the answers. There is NO clearcut blueprint for improving these birds to produce dark eggs AND conform to the proposed standard. Even the early, well known breeders are not producing "ideal", finished, birds in significant numbers. This is uncharted water. We are all in the same boat. All of our experiences and shared dialog is what it will take to get to the end result. Your contributions to this cause, both now and down the road are just as important as anyone elses. Being a genetics expert, or a history major, though helpful, is not a substitute for common sense, hard work, persistance, and good old hands on experience. Through your posts, it is apparent, at least to me, that you have what it takes to take these birds forward. See you at the finish line.
Quote:

 

[onthespot]

Marans are all about the egg. I would DEFINITELY use the black hen if she is laying your darkest egg. Not would, I Am... I have six in my pen right now. They hatched from my best dark laying hen of all time, who happens to have very nice copper hackles too. Their father had mahogany hackles and dark ear tufts, which I had read was a roo that should be culled. I thought to myself, "Self, how could a few feathers behind his ears be so bad? Wha cood go wrong? (italian accent there, lol) Well, I found out. The roo came from a REALLY DARK large egg, like the ones below, far left. If I inadvertantly lost copper hackles, would I gladly trade for egg genes like that? You betcha! Copper hackles can be had, from my roo Goody that also hatched from a dark egg, but a more brownish, satiny colored egg. In the next clutch, under the silkie, Goody hatched from the darkest egg you see there. So By crossing Goody on the black hackled pullets from Lightning, (RIP, the tamales were delicious) then I don't think I have done the breed harm.

 

[Germaine_11.20]

Thank you Patty. I really appreciate your honesty and input. The proof is in the pudding as they say. Look at those beautiful dark eggs!

Bellisimo!

 

[onthespot]

This is one of the few shots I have of the black tufted roo, he is second from the left. My best layer of all time is Tipsy, center, facing the other way, away from the camera. That gorgous hen in the back was culled for mossiness. It got worse in later moults, and some of her pullets were dang near gold breasted. I will find a pic of one of the worst and post it. Found it! See that middle pullet, and the far left? YUCK!!! Adios. I don't want a pen full of birds that look like THAT! I'd rather have black than whatever jacked up color those two are.

 

[onthespot]

And this picture of Tipsy setting the most ridiculous clutch of all time happens to show her copper hackle color better than the pic above. It also shows her egg color. She laid the darkest egg in this clutch, far right.

 

[pinkchick]

Tipsy's a GOOD girl!!!!!!!!!!!!