Hey all, has anyone ever seen this eye coloration before?? Neat, but very odd. Both of her eyes are identical. I wonder if it could be genetic, or just a fluke?
Her eyes are beautiful, very cool! No, I've never seen a split eye colour on a chicken before. I'm sure their is an explanation and term for it though.
I couldn't find any information on this occurring specifically in chickens. But I copy pasted this off the Wikipedia website. Hope it helps Heterochromia of the eye (heterochromia iridis or heterochromia iridum) is of three kinds. In complete heterochromia, one iris is a different color from the other. In sectoral heterochromia, part of one iris is a different color from its remainder and finally in "central heterochromia" there are spikes of different colours radiating from the pupil. Though multiple causes have been posited, the scientific consensus is that a lack of genetic diversity is the primary reason behind heterochromia. This is due to a mutation of the genes that determine melanin distribution at the 8-HTP pathway, which usually only become corrupted due to chromosomal homogeneity.[3] Eye color, specifically the color of the irises, is determined primarily by the concentration and distribution of melanin.[4][5] The affected eye may be hyperpigmented (hyperchromic) or hypopigmented (hypochromic).[3] In humans, usually, an excess of melanin indicates hyperplasia of the iris tissues, whereas a lack of melanin indicates hypoplasia.
The eye color could be changing, or it could be some kind of infection/disease. Check in at the "Emergencies/Disease/Injuries and Cures" section to make sure it isn't some kind of health problem.
She's an English Orpington, and is in good health, but I do have to wonder about something being genetically amiss. Thanks for all the input fellow chicken folks!!!
I am a natural born worrier, so I worry it is some eye problem. Were her eyes colored like this from the start? I had dogs and had them checked for eye diseases, when was showing dogs.
Do you guys think that could be some type of disease? I thought it looked like sectoral heterochromia, when the iris has multiple colours. It's supposedly caused by a lack of genetic diversity which causes a mutation of the genes responsible for melanin. Is their eye diseases that cause a similar effect?
I really never noticed when it happened. She's young, probably 10 weeks. She was also a slower grower than some of our other Orps. I'm betting on the lack of diversity in her genes. She's not hatchery, but she was acquired from local breeding stock.
Now here's a question that I think may be solely moral based...Do we diversify her genes by breeding her out with Orps we KNOW are unrelated, or just stop it with her? Bought her as breeding stock, and boy am I glad I posted!