Where did their leg colour come from?

[krista74]

I crossed my BO rooster (whitish legs, currently with a pink flush) with my RIR hens (yellow legs) and I got some chicks that have yellow legs, some that have whitish legs like their Dad, and some that appear (in the right lighting) to have a greyish-greenish tint to them.

Is this just a combination of the two colours or should I suspect there is a mix somewhere along the line?

Thanks in advance!

- Krista

 

[donrae]

How old are your chicks? I've seen leg color change a bit as a new chicks matures.

The white is usually dominant, so most of them should have white or pink legs. Do you have pics?

 

[krista74]

The chicks are now 11 weeks old.

I will get a picture when I can, but right now there is a brown snake in the coop (somewhere) so I'm not keen to go in on my own while hubby is away at work!

- Krista

 

[krista74]

I do have a picture from a week or so ago, but I suspect it doesn't quite reflect the true colour of their legs. Certainly in this picture they look grey-ish. Their Daddy's legs are a whitish colour, quite pale and not at all like this. And Momma's legs are a distinct bright yellow. In the correct lighting the chick's legs are sort of a pale greenish colour.



- Krista

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Genetics are unpredictable. Some chicks will inherit the leg color from the parents. It's possible it could be a combination, but most likely, there could be a distant relative that had green legs (you never know with hatchery stock...) and it was passed down to them.

 

[donrae]

Huh

Sure not what I'd expect from that cross. No chance of any other parentage, I'm guessing? You sound pretty positive.

I'd love to get niclandia's thoughts on this--not sure if he's around much anymore. He's done some good posts about shank color in the past.

 

[krista74]

No, I have no doubts about parentage. Daddy is a Buff Orpington (the one in my avatar) and I only keep Rhode Island Red and Buff Orpington hens. I know for sure these chicks are not pure BO's as I removed all of the BO eggs from my hens and set RIR eggs for hatching only. My BO's lay sausage shaped eggs which are too small, so I didn't give Momma any of those to hatch out. And since we are literally in the middle of no-where out here, there are no other roosters popping by for visits either!

As I said, all my RIR's have bright yellow legs. Daddy and the 2 BO girls all have pale whitish legs. I was prepared for either once the chicks hatched, but light green I did not expect! It's not a drama either way, I was just curious to how it might have happened.

I do thank you for your time and thoughtful comments though.

- Krista

 

[krista74]

Genetics are unpredictable. Some chicks will inherit the leg color from the parents. It's possible it could be a combination, but most likely, there could be a distant relative that had green legs (you never know with hatchery stock...) and it was passed down to them.

Very true. I got my chickens at auction so who knows what is really hidden in their heritage. I suppose they could have been crossed somewhere down the line, although I was advised they were pure. People say all kinds of things at auction though

- Krista