skin color gene

[enola]

I have to ask this.....

I know there is light meat and dark meat on a chicken. Personally I am a thigh and leg person myself. But, there is a difference in Silky meat, it is grayish/blue looking to me. Or am I imagining that ?

 

[Old Rando]

Enola, Silkie meat is supposed to be blue/black. Skin, meat, and bones.

 

[HorseFeathers]

Quote:

Oh NO

 

[AHappychick]

Quote:

Oh NO

really wouldnt a huge silkie be a riot! I have a few mixed I just let in with my other mixed flock. There is EE/RIR Roo in there so we will se what happens I am going to keep them this way for a little while and then hatch and see what happens than I will put the half silkie mixes with a pure silkie roo (he is not of age yet) and see what I get from those. This should be fun

 

[Kev]

Quote:
Dark meat vs light meat on the typical chicken(turkey etc) are due to different types of muscles.

Silkies have the same light and dark meat as any other chicken.. but in them all flesh is colored due to pigment, not muscle type. Similar to the concept of adding ink drops to a regular chicken carcass.

Interestingly, the various muscles and parts of anatomy are different shades in a dark skinned/fleshed bird. For those that are paired, the corresponding muscle/organ is always identical in the shade. For example on a leg, the different muscles can be in several different shades, but a specific muscle in the leg is the same shade of purple/grey as the same muscle on the other leg.