Well... to completely confuse things...The Ameraucana Breeder's Association maintains that even a bird that's Ameraucana x Ameraucana but does not reasonably meet SOP is an EE, not an Ameracuana. That means that all those project birds out there like the lavenders and chocolates, as well as Splash Ameraucanas, are technically EEs based on what the ABA says. However, lots of people are unhappy with this decision and are trying to change things. Me, I go with what the ABA says until they officially change it.
That's for Ameraucanas only, however. I have no idea how the Araucana folks handle it, since it is part of the breed that the genes that make an Araucana an Araucana are lethal if a bird has two copies, and if you breed rumpless/tufted x rumpless/tufted, you're going to get some babies that are homozygous for those genes and die. So Araucana breeders keep rumped and tuftless birds to breed in with their stock to counteract those lethal genes. I don't know enough about it to know if a rumped and tuftless Araucana is considered an Araucana. I do know it's not showable. I know even less about Cream Legbars than I do Araucanas.
It's up to each individual governing body for the breed to make these decisions. My point about EEs is that there has to be SOMETHING that defines an EE vs. any other mutt out there. It can't be the look, since you can get EEs of any possible color. My understanding has always been that an EE is a bird that carries the blue egg gene (does NOT mean it lays blue eggs) and does not meet the SOP for any other breed. That makes egg color THE defining characteristic of an EE. No blue or green eggs, not an EE. If you let birds that lay pink and cream and brown eggs into the definition of EE, then what stops a super-poor specimen of Orpington from being an EE? There's no way to know the lineage of an EE to know if it carries Ameraucana or Araucana genes unless you hatch it yourself, after all.
Exactly.
Just curious then....not to beat a topic to death...(and I don't think the OP's bird is an EE...but a nice barnyard mix...and still a lovely bird to enjoy)....
@WalkingOnSunshine So, if I understand you correctly....if you have a bird then that has a beard/muff, green legs, pea comb, AND lays pink/brown eggs...it would be a barnyard mix and not an EE? I would have called it an EE as it retained some distinguishable traits of the Ameraucana.
I personally think of dropping the EE designation when there is simply nothing left of the Ameraucana/Araucana traits to distinguish it from any other barnyard mix.
To that end, then, if it doesn't lay blue/green eggs, doesn't have a pea comb, doesn't have green legs, doesn't have a beard or muff...even if there were Ameraucana?Araucana genes supposedly somewhere back in its lineage, I personally would not call it an EE.
However, if it exhibits beard/muff, pea comb, and green legs, I would be inclined to call it an EE even if it laid brown eggs. I'd still be tempted to call it an EE if it had the beard/muff but didn't have green legs nor pea comb.
Maybe I just get hung up on the beard/muff as to me that is an Ameraucana trait. (What other breed has that?)
Would that be an incorrect assumption? or just my personal standard? (And since there are no official standards....)
I guess we could chase that around forever ...so if you don't know the lineage...how would you ever state EE?
More ponderings than anything....
No matter what you call it, or don't call, the OP's bird is a pretty thing that anyone would enjoy in their flock.
Lady of McCamley
