It’s a magical cocktail (or should I say cock-tale) I’m making!The first pic is beautiful , what type is that one?
I’ve been pairing up odd combos in my flock, Keeping track and finally found something worth building on I hope.
The 1st pic mentioned above is the rooster. I added some more pics of him below. The females are younger -2.5 months and bigger than Silkie mama already. They, especially males, have contrasting reds & golds side by side. Hens have more of a bright shiny gold bib. Both have a distinct metallic sheen in their red & gold like I’ve never seen before. It’s hard to capture, but super obvious when you see other reds or golds colored breeds next to them. Their black-green iridescent is also eye catching.
I will call them Helm’s Monarch. Initially When looking at the gold in their individual feathers, it reminded me of a red-gold monarch butterfly wings that has a flash sheen when light hits it.
They are in their early phase still F1. We’ll see if I can stabilize them into f2 and beyond.
What I can tell you is they are a Fibro-melanistics breed with orphington and a couple other rare beauties. Before proceeding to the next phase, I need to see their egg production, egg color, cold hardiness and by mid Spring I’ll deciding who gets to continue the line. I’d love to share as I evolve them.
An adorable side note is that there’s some jumbo silkies I have to take out of the Monarch pen.
Who knows, maybe that will be something I develop as well. If they produce good eggs, I think they will be a hit.
So far the H. Monarchs are
-bearers of a unique shimmering gold/red bibbed &/or saddled
-fuzzy feathered legged
-5 toed
-modest backward swept crest
-sleek black eyes
-mostly melanistic eyes/skin/beak
-med-large bird (maybe even dual purpose)
-Naturally friendly to all including children. They follow me around more like a puppy then a chicken.
-Fearless protectors if they see a Predator. You wouldn’t think this but that’s in part from the Silkie genes.
-Intelligent
-Great free range foragers, but also tolerate enclosures if they aren’t cramped.
-egg color TBA: tan, green or blue eggs
After I’ve selected for egg production and vigor, I’ll sell some while continuing to improve the breed. Seeing if I can het them to breed true.
I’m having fun. A bit of knowledge regarding genetics has been helpful.
If I can’t get them to breed true, I may look at letting an off shoot breed on off grid homestead land to become a kind of modern landrace breed. Oh gosh, My off-grid peeps would love that. Cute + productive! Win-win
Thoughts are welcome.
Do they look and sound like a line worth tending to?
I’m new here btw. Is there another breed like these ones? If so, I’ll just hone them in for what works for my little farm.
Either way, it will be fun.
Sorry, sheesh this was a looooong answer to a simple question.
Wish me luck!
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