Who is laying this egg!

[mix-of-chix]

Hi all,
Question: My hens just started laying in the last two weeks, except the Sicilian has been laying for about 1 month -
I have two olive eggers, one easter egger, one french wheaten maran, and one buttercup sicilian that are hens. I have one silkie bantam rooster (crowing, mating, rooster behavior etc).

I'm getting one white egg, two green eggs (one smaller; one larger), one blue egg, and two brown eggs (one larger and tan; one smaller, darker and speckled).

The sicilian I know is laying the white egg. The easter egger should be laying the blue egg. The olive eggers should be laying the green eggs. The maran should be laying one of the brown eggs. The rooster should not be laying eggs. So that leaves one brown egg unaccounted for. I saw that I had two brown eggs the other day, and I thought maybe I just missed one of the maran's early eggs. But today, there was no eggs in the box early in the morning, but two brown eggs by afternoon in the same nesting box. What am I missing here --- Who is laying it??

pictures posted - #1 this morning's eggs; #2 a pic of the rest of the eggs; #3 the chickens

 

[Chickassan]

You sure the rooster is a rooster?

 

[mix-of-chix]

You sure the rooster is a rooster?

that was one of my thoughts too... but he is crowing every morning and night, mounting the other chickens and pulling on the back of their necks. I haven't seen him enter the nest box; he is usually always out with a few ladies free ranging.

 

[Ridgerunner]

When this kind of stuff happens I've been known to ask if someone is playing a practical joke. Occasionally someone comes back and says yes. Maybe something to consider.

So five pullets and six different looking eggs. With the different colored eggs you think one of the brown eggs is the "extra" and you have gotten two a day at least once. It is possible, especially since they have just started laying. Sometimes it take a pullet a few days to get all the kinks out of her internal egg making factory.

If she accidentally release a second yolk she can lay two eggs in one day. Often the second egg can be thin shelled because she did not make enough shell material, she just made enough for one. There might be other differences, maybe she did not make enough pigment for two eggs? That's how double yolked eggs happen, she accidentally releases two yolks at the same time instead of spread out.

This is not as rare as you might think, especially with pullets just starting to lay. It's not anything to worry about as long as she doesn't do it too often. Thins shelled eggs can be pretty easy to break so it's not a good thing in the long term. See if she fixes that in the next week or two.

 

[mix-of-chix]

When this kind of stuff happens I've been known to ask if someone is playing a practical joke. Occasionally someone comes back and says yes. Maybe something to consider.

So five pullets and six different looking eggs. With the different colored eggs you think one of the brown eggs is the "extra" and you have gotten two a day at least once. It is possible, especially since they have just started laying. Sometimes it take a pullet a few days to get all the kinks out of her internal egg making factory.

If she accidentally release a second yolk she can lay two eggs in one day. Often the second egg can be thin shelled because she did not make enough shell material, she just made enough for one. There might be other differences, maybe she did not make enough pigment for two eggs? That's how double yolked eggs happen, she accidentally releases two yolks at the same time instead of spread out.

This is not as rare as you might think, especially with pullets just starting to lay. It's not anything to worry about as long as she doesn't do it too often. Thins shelled eggs can be pretty easy to break so it's not a good thing in the long term. See if she fixes that in the next week or two.

okay good to know. She has given me a double yoked egg already. I had thought they can't possibly lay more than one egg a day, and that their egg color doesn't change (except get a bit lighter as the season goes on, especially with the marans). I haven't noticed a weaker shell but I'll keep an eye out. Thanks!!

 

[mix-of-chix]

okay just did my evening check for eggs... and I have another little speckled brown egg. surely miss Patagonia ("patty") the maran couldn't have laid three eggs in one day right, with one of them being a lighter tan color? There is no one here that would be playing pranks on me.
I saw the sicilian in the box this afternoon with the maran watching her.

 

[Kfults]

Interesting! Following to see what experts say!

 

[mix-of-chix]

and this was my bounty after work last night... another speckled brown and a tan.
it's not possible for a chicken to lay 5 eggs in two days... right? even if she is the rooster's favorite?
of the other breeds, who else would lay a brown egg? could one of the olive eggers?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yeah, probably one of the colored egg layers. It could be any of them but probably an olive egger.