Unsecure chicken perches

[dislaney]

Hi - I've got a mixed flock of 4 hybrids, all of whom are currently moulting to some extent. My Bluebelle Angela has had the most drastic/complete moult - having had her for 18 months as a light grey bird with brown tinged feathers, she is now a beautiful iron grey colour interpersed with black feathers.

 

To my surprise, her eggs have also changed colour - previously very large, light brown eggs , now smaller and dark brown , almost copper coloured. Is this usual?? And will the eggs stay this colour or gradually revert back?

 

Not a problem either way, just curious!

[Sue]

Yes - Brown egg layers actually "make" white eggs, then spray paint them with pigment just before they get laid

 

If she hasn't been laying for a while it will have given the reserves of pigment time to build up, so the first few eggs will be darker, then as she gets into full lay pale down as they did last year. Also the size of the egg makes a huge difference as the surface area of a small egg gets much more colour per square mm

[dislaney]

Fascinating! Thanks for that - will watch with interest to see what happens to her eggs over the next few weeks. Meanwhile my Black Star keeps laying shell-less eggs, so all varieties currently catered for!

 

Looking for a bona fide dark brown egg layer to add to my little group this spring, so might have to investigate Marans ....

 

Thanks for your help.

[Sue]

With Marans the strain is as important as the breed, so ask to see the eggs the flock are laying.

 

Pretty well most things crossed with a Marans male will come out with the females looking pretty much like a Marans but they will have lost the egg colour. And if a breeder is more interested in the show points of their birds they may again loose the egg colour in the search for showbird perfection. Having said that they are a lovely breed to keep, and their eggs are a joy to collect and make a stunning mixed egg box

 

[dislaney]

Wow! Now I'm hooked.

[Lewis]

Are they all Marans eggs inc the pastel colours?

 

Look great together!

[Sue]

They are a mix of my English Cuckoo Marans -Dark Brown Eggs, Olive Eggers, Cream Legbars and Higgledy Harriets, and yes. They do make a nice mix This year I am changing the breeding slightly to hopefully get a greener green egg, and also a dark Khaki Green egg. I shall keep you all updated.

[Alis girls]

Thanks for asking that - i have 2 - one moulted having before laid light brown eggs now they are dark brown.The other used to lay pale brown now they are even paler.

[Sue]

Thanks for asking that - i have 2 - one moulted having before laid light brown eggs now they are dark brown.The other used to lay pale brown now they are even paler.

 

Sometimes as a hybrid high egg laying bird ages the shell producing mechanism goes slightly awry, with the result too much or too little calcium is added to the shell. This can settle as the bird gets back into full lay, or may remain to the end of her laying days. This is one of the reasons that commercial units clear out and replace their birds at the first moult - having laid so many eggs in the first year the quality of the second season's eggs may not be sufficient for commercial purposes.