The differences with BCM and Wheaten are important to know if you want to breed them. Try not to breed the two varieties together if possible.
The breeder we purchased this Bev Davis line roo from told us that he was a BCM- obviously, she didn't test for the Wheaten gene, good thing we did. We tested him through breeding with RIR (Wheaten based) and found out through offspring that he had a Wheaten parent and a BCM parent. He's now going to a great, caring home now where the mixed genes won't matter. These boys can be really terrific for Olive Eggers!
What obvious signs to look for in Wheaten is lighter halo in hackle, some cinnamon color in wing bow, pale shanks, and often much color on chest. I think also white feathers or white fluff can show a Wheaten influence- but I'm not positive about that.
This male is pure BCM, no Wheaten or Extended Black gene. His halo is less gold, no cinnamon in the wing bow, medium dark shanks, no color on chest (some can have about 10 light chest dots and still be BCM). Most birds don't have the black ticking on hackle tips, so please ignore those.
The Wheaten/BCM male's feet. (Most Wheaten males feet will look pale and pinkish, just like this.)
This is the pure BCM male's feet after mucking in the mud.