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

[halo]

I wonder if the time of the year doesnt make a difference, since its all of your eggs that are lighter. I have some gorgeous young wheaton pullets that are from very dark eggs that just started laying a month ago, and the eggs are of average color. Now Im wondering if they will darken in the spring, when the grass is greener, the days are longer, and the bugs are hopping. I do think this really bad weather is stressful on these birds, which, from what Ive read, can affect egg color.

Its a really interesting topic. I do know, tho, that my Marans pullets are absolutely gorgeous.

 

[kathyinmo]

I hate to even ask, for fear of upsetting someone, but I have yet another question .....

If you are trying to breed toward the proposed standard .... and all the advise I hear is to hatch only from the darkest eggs, would you NOT hatch from the eggs that are lighter now? Keeping in mind, that they must be a 4 on the scale, to even qualify as a Marans, correct????

 

[evonne]

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i think with the way they talk about cycles, and that each hen is sposed to have one and can get lighter, i would ASSUME they mean that you want to hatch only eggs from hens that get the darkest of your hens, not the darkest of the laying cycle??
say you have 3 hens that happen to be on the same cycle, and one lays a 7 one lays a 6 and one lays a 4, you wouldn't want to hatch the 4's eggs... ever, and the one that is a 7 you would want to hatch, even when she lightens to a 6 or a 5 ???????????????
from what i understnad though., this can get really tricky trying to knwo who laid which egg and if it's a 5 on the chart, does it belong to the 4 and she had a good day, or does it belong to the 7 or 6??
it seems almost like you need to have a seperate pen for each of your hens..
or once you know her darkest color put them in pens accordingly..
or only pen your darkest layers for breeding and put your others in your kitchen eggs flock ??

this is why i said i'm not brave enough for all this.. lol...
*goes back to looking at mfc pics because she can understand their breeding*

lol...

 

[ruth]

Quote:
I don't see it as a competition or rivalry. I am just trying to learn, and I think alot of others are also. I looked at this as a subject being discussed, and conclude that there is no one perfect answer.

You sound irritated or annoyed, Ruth. I sure do not mean to offend anyone, by asking questions. I think this is a good thread to learn from, and I am sorry if your feelings are hurt.

Yes, they're chickens ... isn't that what this whole site is about? I would like to learn more about this breed, as well as a few other breeds. That's why I read, and study, and ask questions. I am new to poultry, and have learned all I know from BYC threads like this one.

I'm sorry Kathy - I wasn't referring to you, or really any one person in particular. I was speaking generally. I've seen more arguments and threads shut down over Marans than over anything else.

It's good to ask and to learn. I was actually saying I'm as confused as you are as to what a laying cycle is.

 

[ruth]

Quote:
See, that's another good question and another one I also don't understand. If a hen lays everything from a 4 to an 8 why would hatching the 8 egg be any different than hatching the 4? If it's the same mom and pop and the egg color varies with the "cycle", why would the chick from the 4 be any different genetically than the chick from the 8? Especially since the darkness seems to be related to how much "paint" gets applied and apparently some hens' painter works better on some days than it does on others.

On the other hand, I have begun hatching all eggs from my two hens who ALWAYS, without fail, lay the very dark egg because, theoretically, there's something "special" about those hens.

As I posted previously, I only have a few hens that lay consistently dark eggs every day without ever laying light eggs or any variation of egg color. And, as posted in my pics, you can see the extreme difference between the eggs the same 8 hens were laying this summer versus what they are laying this winter. So, again, I'm as confused as everyone else as to where the "experts" are getting their recommendations and what they are based on.

 

[Lolita]

Excuse the poop

 

[kathyinmo]

Lolita,
Congrats on your new Marans! How many did you get? I am a poor one to sex them, but all I see is roos in your pictures, I think. How old are they?

Does anyone ... experts here .... know the answer about the egg color variance, and hatching? If an egg comes from the same parents, won't it produce the same quality of chick ... if the egg is at the beginning of a cycle or the end of a cycle?

<<< wondering if I even know what a cycle is, again! >>>

 

[ruth]

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Yes, there are a lot that are spotted and speckled. When my birds first started laying their very first eggs, I got a lot of spotted/speckled eggs. Then all eggs darkened up. Now that they've taken their break and are laying again, I'm seeing the same spotted/speckled eggs I haven't seen in over a year. I also have a few young ones that just started laying so some of the eggs are their very first ever. So, that's why I'm saying I've always been confused when I heard that they are supposed to lay their darkest eggs first and then lighten up because in my two years experience, I've seen the exact opposite. Those eggs in the dark photo were laid right before they stopped laying completely for about three months. Of course the ones in the lighter photo are washed out a bit but you can still tell there's quite a difference.

 

[Byrdj]

I've noticed during this record cold snap that the Marans eggs from my one year old hens are much lighter and more spotted than before the cold weather. They were consistent #4's and 5's, even an occaisional #6. In the last couple of weeks, they have only been #3's. It will be interesting to see when they go back to normal. Anyone else noticing this?

I have some seven month old pullets who believe it or not, just started laying on the coldest day of the winter so far and their eggs are very dark. I guess it goes along with that laying cycle vs. color thing.

 

[Lolita]

Quote:
Thanks Kathy, I only got 2 to hatch 3 weeks and 3 days ago. So they look like roos huh?