What Breeds Lay Colored Eggs?!?!

[farmgirlz]

I'm going to be culling out some of my chickens this fall, so I'll have room in my coop next spring for some new varieties. I'm not into showing and breeding and all that fancy stuff. I'm more interested in the eggs. I want eggs with some color & varied sizes. I'll be left with 8 Buff Orpingtons, which just lay a boring brown egg, but they're dependable and cold hardy.

I want to add a few White Leghorns, as I want a pure white egg for my crafts.

I came across the marans in some random web search on accident, which breed would be best to start with?

After I discovered the marans, I looked up "colored eggs" and found the "Easter Egger". What breed is that actually? They lay blueish eggs right?

And just now, I was reading in the forum about coops, saw some one's profile pic with green eggs, so I clicked on it, and she said she has "Olive Eggers" and they really are a nice olive green egg. What breed is that from?

Are they're any other breeds that lay other colors?



Will having tons of different breeds cause turmoil in my coop?

 

[blefky]

The Black Copper Marans has the darkest egg color of the different varieties of Marans (egg color varies with quality of bird, and time of season). Easter Eggers is a term applied to any blue egg laying bird (ie., Ameraucanas, Araucanas) crossed with any other breed of chicken. Because the cross can be with any breed, the result can be any color of egg from pinkish to tan to brown to green to blue - hence the name Easter Egger. Many EE's lay green or blue eggs, but there is no guarantee. Olive Eggers are on the same order as Easter Eggers except that the cross is between a blue egg layer and a dark brown egg layer (like a Marans or a Wellsummer). Good luck with your birds.

 

[NYREDS]

All of them. Some lay brown coloured eggs, some white coloured eggs, some other coloured eggs.

 

[top of the hill]

We have 3 Ameracaunas which will lay blue-ish eggs. Beautiful breed!

 

[Illia]

Easter Eggers - they're mutts that lay blue, green, or brown eggs. Commonly sold under the false claim of an "Americauna"

Ameraucanas - A bearded breed that lays blue eggs; hard to find without weeding out false sellers of Easter Eggers

Araucanas - a rare breed that lays blue eggs and has no tail as well as some fascinating "tufts" on their faces

French Marans - feather legged breed that lay DARK brown eggs. Getting Black Copper, Blue Copper, Wheaten, and Blue Wheaten are your best bet for the best eggs

Welsummers - they lay orangey colored eggs




Plus there's always Polish too, who lay white eggs but look awesome, unique, and beautiful

 

[farmgirlz]

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I really want to have as many different colored eggs as I can, but the health and happiness of my peeps comes first.

 

[Illia]

No

Having many different breeds causes no issue at all! Just as long as they have room.

 

[farmgirlz]

That's what you call a diverse flock. Is that yours?

Aren't they pretty. The Blue Weaton Marans are the silver birds right? They lay a "chocolate" egg too, but not as dark as the BCM if I've done my research well.

 

[off-grid hen]

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[Illia]

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My Blue Wheatens lay just as dark of eggs as my Black Coppers. I've culled out the lighter layers.

That is indeed my flock

The Wheaten Marans is on the far right, the light brown one. There's Buff and Blue and Wheaten Ameraucanas in there as well as various colored Polish, Araucanas, Easter Eggers, Black Copper and Blue Wheaten Marans, a hatchery-based Brahma (my new Blue Partridge girl dwarfs my hatchery girls, and she's just 5 months old!), a couple Olive Eggers, and a New Hampshire.