Why does my cuckoo marans look different from my others?

[sybonbon]

Yours is darker than the Meyer photo.. which is great! Lovely egg basket ya got going there! Yours also @Iluveggers!

However.. the standard of perfection isn't judging wet eggs.. and folks who do that are fudging their color, IMO.

FWIW.. my Golden Comet from TSC lays eggs the same color as what you've posted in the first photo. And at a rate of at least 30 per month since she started.. the longest laying stint was 70 days in a row then one day off and back on for 30.. plus the eggs started out at 60 grams @ 20 weeks old in January and quickly worked their way up to consistently 70-72 grams.

Boy was I shocked to see beautiful terracotta colored eggs from a sex link.. and also in super market shelves (Vital Farms, pasture raised eggs).. while my current ladies were still maturing.

Bloom can be clear or tinted, and not always giving a lightening effect.. See post # 10 for example.. You'll also note in that thread the color itself can be washed off with the bloom and give lighter appearance in some eggs (post # 36)..

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/observations-on-egg-blooms.1295096/

Check out what can be done with heavy bloom..

https://www.skygirlfarm.com/product-page/heavy-bloom

This link had some interesting bloom info, plus LOOK at these eggs..

https://crosshatchfarm.com/product/chicks-purple-coppers-black-copper-marans-straight-run/

Anyways.. I'm only chatting and sharing/ enjoying the discussion.. I don't pretend to know anything.. noting that IMO.. hatching from the "darkest" eggs.. still gives the same genetic material if coming from the same hen (shade varies slightly throughout the lay cycle being darkest early on, but genes and their potential do not). and the sire has major influence over egg shade.

Thanks for all of the info! I don't breed nor do I have any standard I go by. I just have pet chickens. I do agree that wetting is not a way to get a standard. I was sharing that because the first time I tried wiping off the white the egg was brown and when it dried it went back to light brown. Lol I'm really excited to hear about your Comets. I have 3 Comets and 3 ISA Browns at 13 weeks old. Can't wait to see what they lay. Do they lay earlier than other breeds?

 

[3KillerBs]

Those birds are Blue, but not Cuckoo. Cuckoo is a blurrier version of barred so a bird with no stripes can't be called cuckoo, period.

As for the color variation, some of my Blue Australorps have that really deep color. I am selecting for it on purpose.

 

[sybonbon]

Those birds are Blue, but not Cuckoo. Cuckoo is a blurrier version of barred so a bird with no stripes can't be called cuckoo, period.

As for the color variation, some of my Blue Australorps have that really deep color. I am selecting for it on purpose.

View attachment 3534619

Call Karen Meyer to let her know. 419-945-2651

 

[3KillerBs]

Call Karen Meyer to let her know. 419-945-2651

The fact that hatcheries mislabel breeds doesn't make it correct.

Hatcheries are, in fact, notorious for selling birds that only vaguely resemble the supposed breed.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Even if the hatchery sells them as blue cuckoo, if they aren’t cuckoo they aren’t cuckoo. Same thing as blue Andalusians (sold as blue when you can actually get black and splash andalusians too).

 

[sybonbon]

The American Poultry Association currently recognizes four varieties of Marans. They are Black, Black Copper, Wheaten and White. So there is no standard for Blue or Cuckoo. I truly don't care what they are. I was not looking for any breed in particular when I chose them but I'm very happy I did.