Moore head is the gene that causes a black head in (most commonly) partridge chickens, right? I believe I have a few. I have 2 blue silkies with silver leakage or silver partridge or something like that and 2 silver penciled project hens. For simplicity I'll call them silver penciled, but they have some other things going on too, so I don't really know what they would actually be considered.
The father of all but 1 (one of the silver penciled hens) is a dominant white silkie rooster with red/buff leakage. I got him from hatching eggs and the flock he came from did have Moore head partridge hens. The blue Moore head silkies hatched from white roo x blue cuckoo hen, so I believe it came from the rooster.
Question 1: Does it show up on roosters? I'm assuming it doesn't because partridge is only really expressed in females. I'm trying to figure out if my cockerel has it or not. His father is the white silkie and mother is an Isabel brahma.
Question 2: I'm trying to breed for it. What are the genetics that cause it and how does it act in breeding? Is it dominant, recessive, something elelse?
Question 3: I bred a silver penciled hen that has a black head to the dominant white silkie rooster. The outcome was (amongst many dominant whites) one pullet without a black head and one with it, but with less black than her mother. The pullet had black only down to about the back of her eye and down her beard, but her mother has black going further down her neck.
Why does the daughter have less black and is it possible to breed for the amount or quality of the black on their heads?
I can post pictures of any of the birds mentioned if needed.
The father of all but 1 (one of the silver penciled hens) is a dominant white silkie rooster with red/buff leakage. I got him from hatching eggs and the flock he came from did have Moore head partridge hens. The blue Moore head silkies hatched from white roo x blue cuckoo hen, so I believe it came from the rooster.
Question 1: Does it show up on roosters? I'm assuming it doesn't because partridge is only really expressed in females. I'm trying to figure out if my cockerel has it or not. His father is the white silkie and mother is an Isabel brahma.
Question 2: I'm trying to breed for it. What are the genetics that cause it and how does it act in breeding? Is it dominant, recessive, something elelse?
Question 3: I bred a silver penciled hen that has a black head to the dominant white silkie rooster. The outcome was (amongst many dominant whites) one pullet without a black head and one with it, but with less black than her mother. The pullet had black only down to about the back of her eye and down her beard, but her mother has black going further down her neck.
Why does the daughter have less black and is it possible to breed for the amount or quality of the black on their heads?
I can post pictures of any of the birds mentioned if needed.
