who genetically determines the offspring's egg color... the hen or the roo?

[mix-of-chix]

My hen is an olive egger and my roo is a bantam silkie. I have two chicks from their cross. If the chicks grow up to be egg layers, just wondering what to expect as far as egg color.

Thanks!

 

[R2elk]

My hen is an olive egger and my roo is a bantam silkie. I have two chicks from their cross. If the chicks grow up to be egg layers, just wondering what to expect as far as egg color.

Thanks!

Both parents contribute to the genes that the offspring will have concerning egg color. Since the mother is an olive egg layer, she most likely has one blue egg gene and multiple brown egg genes to contribute. The odds of the offspring getting a blue egg gene from her should be 50%. Silkies are said to lay cream colored eggs. My guess is that the most likely expected egg color from the offspring is some shade of brown. There is the 50% possibility of some shade of green also.

 

[mix-of-chix]

hey that's great! Thank you

 

[LadiesAndJane]

hey that's great! Thank you

I know this thread was from May, but I am curious if your chicks, assuming they were any pullets, ended up laying colored eggs. I am playing with this idea as well! Thanks

 

[aart]

There are only white and blue shells.
Brown eggs have brown coating on white shells.
Green eggs have brown coating on blue shells.
The brown coating can be very light or very dark, and can vary day to day.

Only 2 genes determine shell color, a dozen or more control coating color.

 

[R2elk]

There are only white and blue shells.
Brown eggs have brown coating on white shells.
Green eggs have brown coating on blue shells.
The brown coating can be very light or very dark, and can vary day to day.

Only 2 genes determine shell color, a dozen or more control coating color.

There was a thread a couple of years ago that proved the brown coating does penetrate the whole shell. Unfortunately the poster providing the good links was very rude about it and those links got deleted.

If you search the Internet hard enough, you can find the information to disprove what you are saying about the brown egg genes.

It is my understanding that brown is added later in the process than blue which is why it does not penetrate the shell as well, but it has been chemically proven that it does penetrate the whole way through the shell and is not just an overlay..

The blue (oocyanin) is also an added color and as such is no more or less a shell color than brown is. The blue is added earlier in the cycle than the brown and penetrates the shell better at that time.

As far as I know, there is no actual white egg color gene. Instead it is the lack of any other egg color genes. There may be brown color inhibitor genes associated with this also.

Egg colors are much more complex than we try to make them out to be.

 

[aart]

There was a thread a couple of years ago that proved the brown coating does penetrate the whole shell

I think I remember that....still a coating, not a shell color.
But all my brown eggs are white inside(under the membrane).
Olive/green eggs are blue inside.
In general, my theory applies.