SCARRY YOLK COLOR from Marans X egg!!!!

crystalchik

Songster
12 Years
Jan 15, 2008
328
28
184
Central Florida
Hello, I just began to get eggs from my Marans Barred Rock X hens and I just cracked one of the eggs (this was not their first one) and the yolk was an extremely weird color, very dark and almost greenish color. Was this a freak accident or is this common in Marans eggs. I dont want to crack any more bc I was going to give them to a friend to hatch. Anybody have any ideas????? I just invested in Bev's Black Coppers and if the yolks are this color I dont think that anyone will want to buy them to eat!!!
Crystalchik
 
According to the Storeys book a green yolk is caused by hens eating acorns or shepherds purse plant. If you have the book it is on page 141. An olive green can be caused by eating lots of geen grass, silage, or cottonseed meal. I think that it is the food issue. Check to see what they eat and adjust it. If you don't have the Storeys Guide to RAising Chickens it is excellent. I use it for reference quite often. Keep you pretty hens. Jean
 
From Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens:
...The exact color of a yolk depends on the source of the xanthophyll...

RAW YOLKS
reddish, olive green, black -- green grass, silage, cottonseed meal
green -- acorns, shepherd's purse​
 
The yolk color is directly correlated with what the chicken eats! A normal chicken diet consists of corn, which is filled with Xanthophyll . Xanthophyll is the pigment that makes the corn yellow. What is the main source of food?
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom