This was supposed to be fool-proof! Sheesh.....

[donrae]

I have several 2 year old hens that took the winter off from laying. As the days are getting longer and I'm getting more eggs, I decided to separate them to see who is already laying and who hasn't started yet. Since I can't be out there all the time, I figured if I put a brown egg layer and a green egg layer in the smaller coop, I'd be able to tell who was laying by the color of the egg. It worked for several cycles, then I had a glw and a blonde EE hen in together. And got a pale, pale cream egg????? Seriously? I've never got an egg this color before and honestly wasn't sure who it came from--I figured either one could have had it as a fluke. Cracked it open and the inside of the shell was the same color. Huh.

So, I seriously staked the coop out the next day. Nada from either girl.

And the next day.

I marked them both as non-layers and put them back in the big coop, to cycle more hens through the small pen.

The next day, I got the same egg in the big coop. No idea who laid it. Now, I'm thinking one of them's just messing with me!

Staked out the big coop the next day and finally caught the blonde EE in the act--it was hers! I swear, I've never gotten this color egg before and that hen is 2 years old. Classic EE--beautiful pea comb, beard/muffs, willow legs. She's now hit her stride again and is laying one about every other day. I'm confused--I thought the blue/green was genetic and shouldn't "wear out" or fade like the brown can? I've had no illness, predator issues, nothing unusual in my flock--the most stressful thing they've had is having hens pulled out to check for laying.

At least I found out who it was, and I know not to sell her as a green egg layer---that would be embarrassing!

 

[azygous]

You're right. They were messing with you. Cunning little devils!

 

[Kelsie2290]

That's funny, just when you think you have them figured out the chickens do something completely different. One interesting thing is that they say the blue pigment is synthesized in the shell gland, wonder if something is going on with hers??? Does the shell seem normal otherwise. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16553287
Abstract
Biliverdin is an important pigment in the eggshell of chickens and other avian species. Determination of the biosynthesis site for biliverdin is essential for understanding the biochemical process and genetic basis of eggshell pigmentation. Either blood or the shell gland could be the biosynthesis site of eggshell biliverdin. A segregation population with full-sib sisters genotyped Oo and oo, which laid blue-shelled eggs and light brown eggs, respectively, was constructed in a native Chinese chicken breed. Ultraviolet spectrophotometry and HPLC were used to determine the biliverdin concentration in eggshells, blood, bile, excreta, and shell gland of both groups of chickens. Biliverdin content was significantly different between egg shells of blue-shelled and brown-shelled chickens (P < 0.01). Blood and bile were tested 3 to 4 h before oviposition, and excreta was tested randomly. Results showed no significant difference in biliverdin concentration in blood, bile, and excreta between the 2 groups. In the shell gland, the biliverdin contents for the blue-shelled and brown-shelled chickens were 8.25 +/- 2.55 and 1.29 +/- 0.12 nmol/g, respectively, which showed a significant difference (P < 0.01). Our results demonstrated that blood is not the biosynthesis site of the shell biliverdin. Biliverdin is most likely synthesized in the shell gland and then deposited onto the eggshell of chickens.
"The SLCO1B3 gene encodes a membrane transporter protein that mediates the uptake of a wide range of organic compounds into the cell. The blue eggshell color is produced by deposition of biliverdin on the eggshell as it develops in the uterus. Biliverdin is one component of bile salts, which are transported by SLCO1B3, providing a plausible hypothesis for the role of the protein in making blue eggshells."