Silver/Gold Gene

[Blisschick]

It's been awhile since I've concerned myself with this, so I've forgotten exactly how to determine what color would result from breeding. I have a silver birchen roo in with a gold laced hen. I know the roo is SS, and the hen is G is a given. What colors male and female can I expect? My Punnett square is a disaster...

 

[tadkerson]

Silver and gold are sex linked so it does not work like a normal cross; females inherit the alleles (genes) from the father and males inherit one allele from the mother and one allele from the father.

Females will be silver and the males will carry a silver and a gold allele. Silver is incompletely dominant so the males will show some pigment in the white (silver) . Normally shows up as cream or buff in the pyle zone.

The birds will be heterozygous for the columbian gene- males will show columbian restriction and the females will have very poor lacing.

Tim

 

[GotGame]

If you cross a silver cock over a gold hen, you will get silver pullets, and cockerels will carry and show gold and silver both....

 

[Blisschick]

Thanks for the replies. I knew it was sex-linked, but forgotten the details. I know what my chicks are now.

 

[sjarvis00]

Quote:
The Pullets should be silver, the problem is the addition of the pattern gene for lacing and body color that the birchen male does not have. If you have an actual birchen over a golden laced hen they will likely make good lawn ornaments. Then again if teh male is phenotype Birchen and genotype birchen then you can have some even more interesting results. Wish you the best of luck.

 

[catwalk]

The symbol for gold is s+, not G

 

[Henk69]

Columbian should not express much under Birchen.

 

[Blisschick]

Yeah, they're pretty much going to be lawn ornaments. The roo is beautiful, from a mixed background of gamecock, silkie, and EE, and the hen is a gold laced Polish. The chicks are totally not worth anything, but they have some very interesting patterns that I've never seen before in other breeds. One is silver, so I know it's a pullet, and the other is black with gold on the back. I'll just have to wait a few weeks to figure that one out. The Polish actually went broody (hard to believe!

) and is sharing a nest with a little silver birchen cochin mix. She's hatched out three little black chicks. I'm hoping they'll end up showing silver and not just be black. I love silver birchens.

I just wanted to add that I found out the pattern the roo has is what is considered "mealy gray", but I've only been able to find a few pictures of it. I know I have photos of him somewhere, I just have to find them. My storage drive is like a bad closet.

 

[Blisschick]

Quote:
Thanks. I couldn't remember.