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Well I first used the name when living in UK. But yes, I'm now, since 2005, an ex-pat.
I first joined BYC last summer when I was back home for 6 weeks.
I think California sounds great, sun, sea, & warm weather....who could ask for more?
Oh. Ok. You lost me after "Regarding egg color"
Ahahahah-just kidding.
But that sounds very interesting particularly what you are saying about crossing completely unrelated birds in order to pick up all the brown egg genes because it's contrary at least to one of the basic things some people say about maintaining egg color and that is when you cross unrelated birds the F1 offspring can often end laying lighter eggs because the two unrelated lines will be carrying different types of brown egg genes. I need study up on how the eggs genes work. Nobody is really posting about that right now; they all seem to be concentrating on the genetics of the varieties, feather color and type.
I envy you being able to experiment like that. If I ever find a good source to pet out my culls to, there are a bunch of things I would like to do. Thanks for sharing that! Bummer to hear the matte eggs are dominant though-
Well I first used the name when living in UK. But yes, I'm now, since 2005, an ex-pat.
I first joined BYC last summer when I was back home for 6 weeks.
I think California sounds great, sun, sea, & warm weather....who could ask for more?
Well, I am interested in anyone's secret formula for preserving and improving egg color. And what they have noticed with changes from one generation to the next.
Regarding egg colour (& everything else with Marans really), I've been trap nesting & recording which female laid the egg. When removing from the hatcher all birds are wing banded with a number; both parents, down colour & condition of chick is recorded along with anything which seems significant as they grow.
At present I'm putting the sons of my very darkest egg layer of onto the darkest layers of their colour group. As my very darkest egg layer in the ER group is, at present, a bird which does not lay the typically huge egg of the marans, I shall also put the same group of females to the nicest son of darkest layer of the very large egg layers (if that makes sense).
Another thing which I have been trying as an experiment, is to mix the son of the very darkest egg layer of one colour group with the very darkest of a different colour group. The logic behind this being......There are, supposdly, in the region of 12 genes involved in brown eggs, some of which are sex linked. It seem logical to assume that the birds from two different lines will not necessarily be carrying the same genes for brown eggs. By crossing two totally unrelated lines (in my case from different colours) one might hopefully pick up a combination of all of the genes. At least of all those whch are dominant or incompletely dominant will show in the F1. Sure enough some of my F1s laid darker eggs. Unfortunately the non shiny seems to be dominant over shiny.
In the next stage, presumably genes were segregating out. Some of he experiment birds of this generation still laid darker eggs than either starting line but at the other end of the scale some of the generation laid lighter eggs than either starting line. So I used the same F1 males on the darkest egg laying females & that's where I'm at right now; witing for the offspring to come into lay.
Apart from that I'm doing other experiments with colour & type.
Sorry I didn't mean to write a book.
Regarding egg colour (& everything else with Marans really), I've been trap nesting & recording which female laid the egg. When removing from the hatcher all birds are wing banded with a number; both parents, down colour & condition of chick is recorded along with anything which seems significant as they grow.
At present I'm putting the sons of my very darkest egg layer of onto the darkest layers of their colour group. As my very darkest egg layer in the ER group is, at present, a bird which does not lay the typically huge egg of the marans, I shall also put the same group of females to the nicest son of darkest layer of the very large egg layers (if that makes sense).
Another thing which I have been trying as an experiment, is to mix the son of the very darkest egg layer of one colour group with the very darkest of a different colour group. The logic behind this being......There are, supposdly, in the region of 12 genes involved in brown eggs, some of which are sex linked. It seem logical to assume that the birds from two different lines will not necessarily be carrying the same genes for brown eggs. By crossing two totally unrelated lines (in my case from different colours) one might hopefully pick up a combination of all of the genes. At least of all those whch are dominant or incompletely dominant will show in the F1. Sure enough some of my F1s laid darker eggs. Unfortunately the non shiny seems to be dominant over shiny.
Apart from that I'm doing other experiments with colour & type.
Sorry I didn't mean to write a book.
Oh. Ok. You lost me after "Regarding egg color"
Ahahahah-just kidding.
But that sounds very interesting particularly what you are saying about crossing completely unrelated birds in order to pick up all the brown egg genes because it's contrary at least to one of the basic things some people say about maintaining egg color and that is when you cross unrelated birds the F1 offspring can often end laying lighter eggs because the two unrelated lines will be carrying different types of brown egg genes. I need study up on how the eggs genes work. Nobody is really posting about that right now; they all seem to be concentrating on the genetics of the varieties, feather color and type.
I envy you being able to experiment like that. If I ever find a good source to pet out my culls to, there are a bunch of things I would like to do. Thanks for sharing that! Bummer to hear the matte eggs are dominant though-
