Sex-Link using Legbars

[Kenncarr]

I have hatched two rounds of Welsummer (rooster) X Cream Legbar chicks. This should produce sex-links. The chicks I suspect are males have very small head spots compared to other sex-links I have seen. What would cause them to not be as defined? My stock is from breeders and not hatchery quality. The Legbars that are auto-sexing are very obvious at hatch and grow out beautifully. Any input Is appreciated. Attached photos are all the chicks together and suspected males.

 

[chowder10]

I heard someone talk about this cross and they said it can be hard to sex them and you really have to know what the chicks are supposed to look like. I would say pictures 3 and 4 look like they have the white dot so I would guess roos for them.

 

[nicalandia]

I have hatched two rounds of Welsummer (rooster) X Cream Legbar chicks. This should produce sex-links. The chicks I suspect are males have very small head spots compared to other sex-links I have seen. What would cause them to not be as defined? My stock is from breeders and not hatchery quality. The Legbars that are auto-sexing are very obvious at hatch and grow out beautifully. Any input Is appreciated. Attached photos are all the chicks together and suspected males.

This type of sex links are very hard to spot due to the nature of wildtype, you really need two copies of barring to show on wildtype chick down....

 

[Kenncarr]

I was able to chat with an amazing breeder out of Washington state that has worked with this cross for quite sometime. I got some good advice from her, but one of the things she pointed out was my chicks have less of a head spot on the males than hers. She did make a video on sex-linkage and pointed out with this cross that it varies depending on your lines. There is definitely a learning curve to sexing them. I’m mostly curious as to why mine would express the head spot less than hers. All cream legbars carry only one copy of the barred gene. So her sex-linked chicks would only carry one barred gene, just as mine do.

 

[nicalandia]

I’m mostly curious as to why mine would express the head spot less than hers. All cream legbars carry only one copy of the barred gene. So her sex-linked chicks would only carry one barred gene, just as mine do.

I am not sure how many Cream Legbars line have you seen, but they have many variability in chick down expression. This is due to many genes. I personally believe they have allelic mutations on their autosomal e+ and sex linked Barring mutation.

I have seen Dark Males that are difficult to spot from dark females due to their chick down being of the same shade, females have a headspot is another chick down factor on many lines. I personally cull those dark males and females with distinctive headspot

 

[Kenncarr]

I am not sure how many Cream Legbars line have you seen, but they have many variability in chick down expression. This is due to many genes. I personally believe they have allelic mutations on their autosomal e+ and sex linked Barring mutation.

I have seen Dark Males that are difficult to spot from dark females due to their chick down being of the same shade, females have a headspot is another chick down factor on many lines. I personally cull those dark males and females with distinctive headspot

Interesting! I’ve never had trouble sexing the pure legbars. Males are very obvious and light in color with large head spots. I do however have some females, very clear females, but have a small yellow spot on top of their head. I wondered why that is.

Last year I produced chicks from Legbar Rooster over Welsummer hens. This year I am back crossing the mixed hens to a welsummer rooster. This cross is producing very obvious sex-links as well, which I wasn’t planning on.

 

[Kenncarr]

I may be over thinking the sexing in fear of giving someone a cockerel that I am claiming is a pullet. Some females are so obvious to me, and same with some males. There are some in-between chicks that throw me off because the chipmunk stripe breaks a bit behind the neck. But it is further down on the head than I would expect to see a head spot. They also have a nice dark defined v on the top of their head.

 

[Kenncarr]

Darker chick on the left is definitely female. Very consistent defined stripe, and has the coloring of my Legbar chicks. Chick on the right appears to be female with nice defined v. But not super consistent stripe down it’s back and had the same color as my welsummer chicks.

 

[Kenncarr]

Another pic of the two together. Female on left, ?female? On right.