Mystery Chick ID?

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

I'd love some ideas on what this chick is because I'm so confused!
I seperated my hen, Spices, a Buff Sussex and penned her with one of my Buff Sussex roosters. I don't have an exact date but it was sometime between 6th and 15th of August. On the 27th of Sept I set three eggs from her.
I thought that was plenty of time for her to produce pure Sussex after potentially running with my Barnevelder boys.
Then hatched the chick in question.

Things that further my confusion.
I have recently bred 6 sussex X barnevelder (buff/Gold colour) and none of them feathered in like this.
I may have set the wrong egg but Spices has a fairly distinct pink egg. The only other hens that were in and out of that pen was another buff sussex and a frizzled sussex cross (Silver coloured, bearded and crested).
My current theory is if I set the wrong egg it was the frizzle's.
Anyone got a clue? Or am I just crazy over complicating it and I just have a funky chick down Buff Sussex??

 

[NatJ]

Anyone got a clue? Or am I just crazy over complicating it and I just have a funky chick down Buff Sussex??

I think that is the most likely explanation, but you can watch as it grows and see whether it becomes a typical Buff Sussex or if anything continues to seem odd.

I seperated my hen, Spices, a Buff Sussex and penned her with one of my Buff Sussex roosters. I don't have an exact date but it was sometime between 6th and 15th of August. On the 27th of Sept I set three eggs from her.
I thought that was plenty of time for her to produce pure Sussex after potentially running with my Barnevelder boys.

With that length of time, pure Buff Sussex chicks are more likely than not.

But it is very much possible for her to store sperm from a Barnevelder for that long, so yes you could have a Barnevelder-mix chick from her. Hens can store sperm for more than 3 weeks in some cases, although it is more common for an egg to be fathered by whichever rooster mated with the hen within the week before the egg way laid.

Things that further my confusion.
I have recently bred 6 sussex X barnevelder (buff/Gold colour) and none of them feathered in like this.

That is a good point, but their mature feathers would tell more than the first chick feathers. Chick feathers can be pretty variable in some cases, so this chick could be an oddball of either pure Sussex or Sussex/Barnevelder mix.

I may have set the wrong egg but Spices has a fairly distinct pink egg. The only other hens that were in and out of that pen was another buff sussex and a frizzled sussex cross (Silver coloured, bearded and crested).
My current theory is if I set the wrong egg it was the frizzle's.

If you set an egg from the other Buff Sussex, you will probably never know by looking at the chick.

As regards the frizzle:
--a frizzle chick would prove her to be the mother (but about 50% of her chicks should have normal feathering)
--a chick with a beard and/or a crest would prove the frizzle to be the mother
--a gold male chick would prove the frizzle to NOT be the mother, which would mean one of the Buff Sussex hens must be the mother.

Assuming all the roosters are gold (Buff Sussex and Barnevelder):
--a silver chick would prove the frizzle to be the mother, and must be male
--any gold chick from the frizzle would have to be a female (this would be any gold chick with frizzling or a beard or a crest)
--a gold female chick with no frizzling or beard or crest could have come from the frizzle or from a Buff Sussex mother. The chance of the frizzle producing such a chick is about 1 in 16, with the other 15/16 being either male, frizzled, bearded, crested, or some combination of those.

Depending on what other hens you have, there is also the chance that another hen slipped in and laid an egg that you didn't realize, so all other hens are also possibilities as the mother (unlikely, but can't rule them out with the information given so far.)

 

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

Assuming all the roosters are gold (Buff Sussex and Barnevelder):

There's one Silver Barnevelder.

Depending on what other hens you have, there is also the chance that another hen slipped in and laid an egg that you didn't realize, so all other hens are also possibilities as the mother (unlikely, but can't rule them out with the information given so far.)

All hens are Buff Sussex and Barnevelder (gold and silver), except for the frizzle and my one other mix. I am not sure on any of Elly's genetics as I've never hatched from her, she is rose combed though. By egg colour I can be certain I did not set a barnie egg.

 

[NatJ]

There's one Silver Barnevelder.

All hens are Buff Sussex and Barnevelder (gold and silver), except for the frizzle and my one other mix. I am not sure on any of Elly's genetics as I've never hatched from her, she is rose combed though. By egg colour I can be certain I did not set a barnie egg.

The one with a rose comb might produce a chick with a rose comb, but it is often possible for a rose-comb hen to produce a chick with no rose comb. So there's no obvious way to rule her out, other than your observations of who lays where and what hens produce which eggs.

I think you just will not know for sure until the chick grows more, and may not know for sure even then. It looks like you've considered the options pretty thoroughly, but there's no way to be positive at this point, because so many of the birds in your flock have the same genes (in terms of what traits their chicks could show).

 

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

The one with a rose comb might produce a chick with a rose comb, but it is often possible for a rose-comb hen to produce a chick with no rose comb. So there's no obvious way to rule her out, other than your observations of who lays where and what hens produce which eggs.

I think you just will not know for sure until the chick grows more, and may not know for sure even then. It looks like you've considered the options pretty thoroughly, but there's no way to be positive at this point, because so many of the birds in your flock have the same genes (in terms of what traits their chicks could show).

Thank you for your help! There still extra things I've thought about like skin colour (of my Sussex X Barnevelder they all seem to hatch with yellow legs even if they're not fully yellow skinned), this chick shows white skin. But I guess I just wait and see.
Interestingly Spices has now hatched 7 chicks which, if the strange chick is pure, should be full siblings, not a single one of them is odd coloured.

 

[NatJ]

Thank you for your help! There still extra things I've thought about like skin colour (of my Sussex X Barnevelder they all seem to hatch with yellow legs even if they're not fully yellow skinned), this chick shows white skin. But I guess I just wait and see.
Interestingly Spices has now hatched 7 chicks which, if the strange chick is pure, should be full siblings, not a single one of them is odd coloured.
View attachment 3669715

Those are interesting points.

I am looking forward to updates as the chick grows, because I really do not know the answer so far!

 

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

An update. Almost 3 weeks old. He's legs have darkened, but I'm not seeing any hinting of yellow skin.
(Spices is id+/-)

The two other chicks that hatched at the same time. Interestingly the mystery chick, was one of the first two to hatch but has been the slowest feathering.

This dark chick actually had faint down marking but I didn't mention that.

The "full siblings" that their mum is raising are all feathering in fairly normally.

 

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

4, almost 5, weeks old. He's still the slowest feathering. And I'm still confused...

This is the one that had faint down markings.

 

[NatJ]

4, almost 5, weeks old. He's still the slowest feathering. And I'm still confused...
View attachment 3685514 View attachment 3685513

Thanks for the update! Hmm, yes I see why it's still confusing.
I am leaning toward it being a pure Buff Sussex that just looks a bit odd, but it still is odd, and I still can't rule out a gold Barnevelder father.

...a frizzled sussex cross (Silver coloured, bearded and crested).
My current theory is if I set the wrong egg it was the frizzle's.

I notice you calling the chick "he." The chick clearly has gold (not silver), but any son of a silver hen would show silver color, not gold. So that chick is definitely not a SON of the silver frizzle.

There's one Silver Barnevelder.

Unless the Silver Barnevelder rooster is also carrying gold, he is definitely not the father of the mystery chick.

An update. Almost 3 weeks old. He's legs have darkened, but I'm not seeing any hinting of yellow skin.
(Spices is id+/-)

I'm seeing the dark feet in the more recent picture, too. Do any of your roosters have dark feet? (id+/id+) Because if they don't, then one of them must be Id/id+ to produce a dark-footed chick.

He's still the slowest feathering.

I'm thinking he has slow feathering, while the rest have fast feathering. That would mean at least one parent has slow feathering (which you probably don't know unless you raised them from chicks, or noticed in other chicks from the same parents.) But it could provide a clue about whether this chick has the same parents as the other chicks.

 

[Somewhere_In_The_Clouds]

Thanks for the update! Hmm, yes I see why it's still confusing.
I am leaning toward it being a pure Buff Sussex that just looks a bit odd, but it still is odd, and I still can't rule out a gold Barnevelder father.

Yeah, I'm leaning toward Sussex too, but just has some interesting traits. Don't remember ever hatching a chick like this one.

I notice you calling the chick "he." The chick clearly has gold (not silver), but any son of a silver hen would show silver color, not gold. So that chick is definitely not a SON of the silver frizzle.

That is a very good point! I mostly just said "he" because I tend to just assign something if I'm talking about a single chick, but should be able to tell sometime in the next week for sure!

Unless the Silver Barnevelder rooster is also carrying gold, he is definitely not the father of the mystery chick.

I do not believe he carries gold as I do have a Gold/Silver cockerel at the moment and they both look different.

I'm seeing the dark feet in the more recent picture, too. Do any of your roosters have dark feet? (id+/id+) Because if they don't, then one of them must be Id/id+ to produce a dark-footed chick.

id+ is something I am working on breeding out of my lines. Spices is my only id+/- sussex hen. my older rooster whom I'm about ready to retire from the main breeding is proven Id/id+. My other rooster (the believed father of all the chicks posted in this thread) is still uncertain. This was the test breeding and I believe he unfortunately is Id/id+ too... I haven't properly checked the chicks with the broody.

I'm thinking he has slow feathering, while the rest have fast feathering. That would mean at least one parent has slow feathering (which you probably don't know unless you raised them from chicks, or noticed in other chicks from the same parents.) But it could provide a clue about whether this chick has the same parents as the other chicks.

I have actually raised most of my chickens from hatch but some are a few years old and I would not remember if there was slow or fast feathering.