Question regarding barred genetics and chick color

[ZooAtHome]

Gave my broody pullet four eggs on Halloween. This morning I discovered two chicks had hatched during the night.

One mom is an Easter Egger that lays blue eggs, the other an Olive Egger. Fathers are either Black Copper Marans cross or Crested Cream Legbar cross. What I'm wondering is, if the CCL only has only one barred gene (very likely), could his offspring be black? If not, that really narrows down the parentage for me. I know the single-barred cockerel will only pass barring on to half of his offspring (gender indiscriminate), I just don't know what the other half are likely to look like. Mothers are not barred at all, nor are they black.

This is largely just a curiosity question in hopes of furthering my genetic knowledge. I'm breeding for egg color, not SoP. I know these chicks are Easter Eggers, possibly Olive Eggers. But it would be helpful for future pairings if I knew which cockerel sired them. (Note: This was not a planned breeding. I had a pullet go broody that I couldn't break, so I relented and gave her four eggs to sit on. At the time, I wasn't even certain they were fertile. I know which mothers because of egg color, but not fathers.)

 

[sylviethecochin]

If they're both crosses, aren't they both single-barred?

One barring gene = half of the chicks should be black.

 

[ZooAtHome]

If they're both crosses, aren't they both single-barred?

One barring gene = half of the chicks should be black.

They were supposed to be, but somehow I ended up with a Black Copper Marans cross cockerel without any barring. I talked to the folks at the hatchery and they said it happens in less than 2% of their chicks. He looks like an over-melanized BCM cockerel.

That's what I thought, regarding the chicks. The half that get the barred gene should have a white head dot, the half that don't should just be black. Since these are not sex-links, the dot won't indicate sex, just barring. That sound right?

 

[pennyJo1960]

Question do any have feathered legs?

 

[ZooAtHome]

Question do any have feathered legs?

Chicks or cockerels? My BCM cross cockerel has feathered legs, the CCL does not. I did not see feathered legs on the one chick I got my hands on. I have not yet seen the legs on the other one. I didn't even realize there were two the first time I checked. (It was before dawn and before coffee, lol.)

Mama Rosie is getting impatient with all my poking about, so I'm trying to give her some quiet time to settle and enjoy her babies. She also still has one egg yet to hatch and I know the chick is alive in there. Pretty sure I won't be able to resist checking on them again later though. I'll try to get a better look then.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Nice she let you look at any My silkie are lethal when it come to chicks take two of us
but they are my breathing incubators here the feathered leg idea is to know the father
although black like that is also how barred start

 

[ZooAtHome]

Yeah, I had considered that as well. The big difference between the two cockerels is one is barred, the other has feathered legs. I just wasn't sure if non-barred chicks would be black (answer - yes) or if feather legs were dominant (answer - most of the time). So, any barred chicks definitely come from the CCL cross, those with feathered legs from the BCM cross. Those with neither ... , but most likely the CCL. If I got any of that wrong, feel free to enlighten me.

 

[ZooAtHome]

For anyone who might be following this, I got a closer look at both babies and they actually both have feathered legs. The feathers are just really, really tiny. That means my BCM cross sired them both.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[pennyJo1960]

Yes does keep the peeps should give green eggs add ham