Sex- linked Information

[BrandyJK]

There might be a tinge of white on the males head, but I definitely love that the female has a stripe and the fact that they are red instead of a regular black sex link

 

[SunnySideUpGUAM]

Has anyone ever used a Delaware in a black sex link cross? They are barred, just curious?

 

[QueenMisha]

Has anyone ever used a Delaware in a black sex link cross? They are barred, just curious?

Won't technically work for a BSL. The Silver will hide any Barring present in cockerel offspring and they will likely appear a muddy columbian (depending on the exact cock used in the crossing of course). They can however be used for making RSLs, as they carry the sex linked silver gene, in which case the silver offspring will be easily identifiable as male while pullets will be red.

 

[SunnySideUpGUAM]

Im always playing around on the color calculator and I paired a black roo with a black patterned silver columbian barred, and I came out with black pullets and barred cockerels so i wanted to see if anybody here had done it.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Im always playing around on the color calculator and I paired a black roo with a black patterned silver columbian barred, and I came out with black pullets and barred cockerels so i wanted to see if anybody here had done it.

Personally I have not made that kind of cross. I’ve made red sex links with Delaware but not BSL. I’ve been following this thread since it started and I don’t remember anybody ever posting pictures of a black rooster over Delaware hen cross. That’s kind of surprising as long as this thread has been active.

I’m not sure where the Queen’s silver concern comes in. Black barred hens are often silver, not gold. Several of the roosters listed in Tim’s black sex link chart in post one are silver. Queen, could you expound on that a little, I don’t see the connection. What am I missing?

There are two criteria to make a BSL. The male has to be not-barred and the hen has to be barred. An extended black rooster over a Delaware hen meets that criteria. Any resulting black feathers in a cockerel will be barred when the chick feathers out. Any black feathers in a pullet will not be barred. An Extended Black rooster over a Delaware hen will produce chickens with black feathers.

The second is that you have to be able to see the spot at hatch. That’s the one I don’t know for sure. The Delaware is probably Wheaten, but several roosters in that chart are Wheaten. I’ve read that Wheaten is not good for making black sex links but the Extended Black should override the Wheaten in the chick. I think it’s when both parents are Wheaten that it is a problem. The Columbian pattern may possibly mess that up but one of the roosters in Tim’s chart is a Columbian Wyandotte. Columbian is not a sex linked gene. I’d think that if the Columbian Wyandotte would work for a male, a Delaware would work for the hen if you have an Extended Black rooster. I’d love to see some photos of the chicks at hatch.

That calculator can be addicting, it’s a lot of fun. You can learn a lot of basic stuff from it. But it doesn’t tell you anything about what the chicks will look like which is critical to making a sex link. And it doesn’t handle a lot of subtle things very well. Still, it is a great tool and it can get you to thinking.

 

[QueenMisha]

Im always playing around on the color calculator and I paired a black roo with a black patterned silver columbian barred, and I came out with black pullets and barred cockerels so i wanted to see if anybody here had done it.

Actually, in the case of a black cockbird over a Delly hen, you should get BSLs. I apologize - I should have asked what kind of cockbird you are using before answering. I was basing my thoughts on use of something like a "red" male e.g. Production Red as they use in a lot of BSL crosses. I'm pretty sure a black cockbird is the only bird that would be useful in making BSLs over a Delaware but nonetheless, I believe you are correct and it should work. As @Ridgerunner pointed out it's rather curious that no one has ever posted that cross to this thread (in my memory anyhow) so if you do make it please share pictures if you can.

I’m not sure where the Queen’s silver concern comes in. Black barred hens are often silver, not gold. Several of the roosters listed in Tim’s black sex link chart in post one are silver. Queen, could you expound on that a little, I don’t see the connection. What am I missing?

First of all, looking over my post I can see why you were confused. I had had less than 4 hours of sleep yesterday and been up since 6AM when I made that post last night - probably should have been going to sleep at that time, not on BYC! In any case, what I meant to write was columbian, not silver. The columbian in Delawares would prevent them being useful in most BSL crosses because the chicks would come out with hardly any black and as such would fail to properly show barring. Additionally, as I said above, my thoughts were based on a faulty assumption that SunnySide would be using a red cockerel in their mating. I was referring to how in the case of using a red cockerel, e.g. Production Red over a Delaware, you wouldn't really be able to sex them AS black sex links because they would come out looking like red sex links - genetically, they would actually be both red and black sex links, and you would be able to sex them easily, just not by a headspot.

Annnnnd all of that is why I probably shouldn't post on BYC after 10PM.

 

[windyridgefarm]

Actually, in the case of a black cockbird over a Delly hen, you should get BSLs. I apologize - I should have asked what kind of cockbird you are using before answering. I was basing my thoughts on use of something like a "red" male e.g. Production Red as they use in a lot of BSL crosses. I'm pretty sure a black cockbird is the only bird that would be useful in making BSLs over a Delaware but nonetheless, I believe you are correct and it should work. As @Ridgerunner pointed out it's rather curious that no one has ever posted that cross to this thread (in my memory anyhow) so if you do make it please share pictures if you can.



First of all, looking over my post I can see why you were confused. I had had less than 4 hours of sleep yesterday and been up since 6AM when I made that post last night - probably should have been going to sleep at that time, not on BYC! In any case, what I meant to write was columbian, not silver. The columbian in Delawares would prevent them being useful in most BSL crosses because the chicks would come out with hardly any black and as such would fail to properly show barring. Additionally, as I said above, my thoughts were based on a faulty assumption that SunnySide would be using a red cockerel in their mating. I was referring to how in the case of using a red cockerel, e.g. Production Red over a Delaware, you wouldn't really be able to sex them AS black sex links because they would come out looking like red sex links - genetically, they would actually be both red and black sex links, and you would be able to sex them easily, just not by a headspot.

Annnnnd all of that is why I probably shouldn't post on BYC after 10PM.

I just have to ask... What would happen if you used a blue cock instead of a black?

 

[QueenMisha]

I just have to ask... What would happen if you used a blue cock instead of a black?

You'd still get black sex links, as blue is just diluted black, however you may not be able to sex them all correctly at hatch. This is because from a blue cock you'll get half and half blue and black offspring. While the males will indeed be barred regardless of whether they are blue or black, blue chick down can obscure the head spot and so make the blue cockerels and pullets more difficult to tell apart as chicks. The half that hatch black would still of course be sexable just like regular BSLs.

 

[windyridgefarm]

You'd still get black sex links, as blue is just diluted black, however you may not be able to sex them all correctly at hatch. This is because from a blue cock you'll get half and half blue and black offspring. While the males will indeed be barred regardless of whether they are blue or black, blue chick down can obscure the head spot and so make the blue cockerels and pullets more difficult to tell apart as chicks. The half that hatch black would still of course be sexable just like regular BSLs.

From what I read I thought for this particular cross the head spot would be hard to see and unreliable, even in the blacks, From what I understood I thought they were sexable from the stripe down the back. In which case I wondered if this would be more difficult to see if you added blue to the equasion. I had not thought about the chicks being half black and blue but wonder if that would be an issue.

 

[SidChick]

I don't see my Welsummer rooster on the list. I just hatched my first egg. Roo Welsummer, hen barred rock. Is sex link reliable here?