Mixed Breed Photo Reference *please read guidelines in first post before adding content*

[my sunwolf]

This is the father, a non-standard Blue Ameraucana:


I have no idea who the mothers are. Primarily, they are production reds, a possible white rock, and maybe a black australorp as well.

Barred cockerel:


Bad photo of 2 Barred cockerels and 2 Blue Pullets:


The same Blue pullets at 4 months:


The same Blue pullets at 6 months:


Another batch of offspring from similar mothers (ignore the Cornish X):


The Blue rooster in back at 4-5 months:


The blue pullet on the left at 4-5 months:


The same blue, as well as the black and the splash, at 4-5 months:

 

[donrae]

Don't have photos of the parents in this case, but the photos of the kids are neat.

The father is a Buff Orpington, in all cases.

This cockerel's mother was a Black Sex Link:

This guys momma was more likely a barred rock. Black sex link hens don't have any barring to pass on to offspring, it's not hidden or recessive, it's just not there. He's sure pretty! I love mixed barred birds.

 

[my sunwolf]

This guys momma was more likely a barred rock. Black sex link hens don't have any barring to pass on to offspring, it's not hidden or recessive, it's just not there. He's sure pretty! I love mixed barred birds.

I thought so too but there were no barred hens in the pen! And believe me, this guy did not let his birds out. My other option was brown or white Leghorn, and that doesn't make sense, unless of course there is some barring in the line as they were all hatchery birds.

I would love your opinion on why, with possible mothers as Production Red, RSL, White Rock, Australorp, and Easter Egger, that my non-standard Blue Ameraucana produced barred chicks as well!

 

[my sunwolf]

... Black sex link hens don't have any barring to pass on to offspring, it's not hidden or recessive, it's just not there. ...

I found this here:
"Barring is a dominant trait (B) that inhibits pigment to create white bars or stripes on any background color. This gene is carried on the Z chromosome, so female chickens have only copy of this gene (from their father). They pass their copy on to their sons but do not pass on a barring gene to their daughters. Female chickens can either carry the barring gene (B/-) or not carry the barring gene (b/-). Male chickens have two copies of the barring gene, one on each Z chromosome (one from each parent). Male chickens can be homozygous dominant for barring (B/B), homozygous recessive (b/b), or heterozygous (B/b). Because barring is dominant, even one copy will make the male’s feathering barred. (Interestingly, heterozygous barred males have darker, bolder barring while homozygous barred males have a lighter overall color resulting from the additional pigment inhibition. For that same reason, the effect of barring is usually less on females because they only have one copy of the gene.)"

Does that mean that if a female carries the barring gene it will always express itself? And that's why Black sex link hens don't carry the barred gene?

 

[browning6]

This is a hen i raised teh mother a brown leghorn and the father a cuckoo maran. I think she is so pretty with the red breast and penciled feathers on her neck.

 

[donrae]

I thought so too but there were no barred hens in the pen! And believe me, this guy did not let his birds out. My other option was brown or white Leghorn, and that doesn't make sense, unless of course there is some barring in the line as they were all hatchery birds.

I would love your opinion on why, with possible mothers as Production Red, RSL, White Rock, Australorp, and Easter Egger, that my non-standard Blue Ameraucana produced barred chicks as well!

With these breeds, my guess is the white rock had barring. That dominant white, to my understanding, is capable of hiding barring, along with pretty much everything else. That's why white rocks aren't recommended hens to use for making sex link crosses, they tend to pop out barred chicks. I guess they're the exception to the "barring always expresses itself" rule. The barring is still there, genetically, it's just masked by the white.

There's really no way a black sex link or the leghorns you mentioned could have hatched this pretty barred guy, unless father was barred. One parent had to be barred, either way.

not meaning to hijack the thread.......I'm actually working on getting some pics to post here.......

 

[donrae]

This is a hen i raised teh mother a brown leghorn and the father a cuckoo maran. I think she is so pretty with the red breast and penciled feathers on her neck.

What color eggs does this pretty lady lay?

 

[my sunwolf]

With these breeds, my guess is the white rock had barring. That dominant white, to my understanding, is capable of hiding barring, along with pretty much everything else. That's why white rocks aren't recommended hens to use for making sex link crosses, they tend to pop out barred chicks. I guess they're the exception to the "barring always expresses itself" rule. The barring is still there, genetically, it's just masked by the white.

There's really no way a black sex link or the leghorns you mentioned could have hatched this pretty barred guy, unless father was barred. One parent had to be barred, either way.

not meaning to hijack the thread.......I'm actually working on getting some pics to post here.......

Ah, the White Rock!! That makes a lot of sense.

No hijacking here, just exciting genetics talk

 

[RoostersCrow HensDeliver!]

Here is a 20 week old pullet out of a Black Australorp rooster and a Red Sex Link hen. She is white with a couple black spots and a tiny bit of red leakage around her face. Big thick black legs like her father, I thought she was a roo for a while.


here is a younger pic of her, she hatched with black spots too


Here is a pic of her 2 sisters who are also out of RSL hens but could either have an Aussie or Black Sex Link father, the smutty one is from the Aussie too, I believe. (Please ignore the Barred girls.)

 

[my sunwolf]

Here is a 20 week old pullet out of a Black Australorp rooster and a Red Sex Link hen. She is white with a couple black spots and a tiny bit of red leakage around her face. Big thick black legs like her father, I thought she was a roo for a while.


here is a younger pic of her, she hatched with black spots too


Here is a pic of her 2 sisters who are also out of RSL hens but could either have an Aussie or Black Sex Link father, the smutty one is from the Aussie too, I believe. (Please ignore the Barred girls.)

Wow, what a lovely bird!