Ameraucana Breeders Club
The Official Forum of the Ameraucana Breeders Club => Ameraucana Marketplace => Topic started by: philipu on August 13, 2009, 11:16:34 PM
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Hi, I have a question on wheaten males, I have two that look like they will be blue wheaten, when do the beards on them change to the dark color, say the black of the wheaten.
Both of these guys have the cream color, does that change with age or does it remain the cream color, the females are all looing good.
Thanks, phil
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Phil, my experience has been that the wheaten and blue wheaten males take the longest to fully mature and get adult plumage; way past the 20 week mark.
This makes them the most expensive to raise.
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Check out this old topic:
http://ameraucana.org/abcforum/index.php?a=topic&t=362
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Phil, my experience has been that the wheaten and blue wheaten males take the longest to fully mature and get adult plumage; way past the 20 week mark.
This makes them the most expensive to raise.
Thanks Jean, the chicks are growing quickly,
I always love the color of the wheaten and blue wheaten females.
I have sent a private email....love the birds hope to see you in
October in Great Falls, phil
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Check out this old topic:
http://ameraucana.org/abcforum/index.php?a=topic&t=362
Thanks John, thats what happening with the two cockerels,
juvenile feathers, I appreciate it....
this happened when I first bred the game like asil and shamo,
they have this type of feathering, didn\'t know what was going on with them, was going to cull....but a friend who raises game said leave them alone, it\'s the normal process, and sure enought, when they got their adult sex feathers (saddle), they turned out really nice bbr\'s.
Thanks again....phil
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Phil,
It\'s good to hear from you. I think one of the early breeders of wheaten cockerels coined the phase \"patience is a virtue\".
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Phil,
It\'s good to hear from you. I think one of the early breeders of wheaten cockerels coined the phase \"patience is a virtue\". [/quote
Yes I\'ve heard that....... ;)]
I don\'t mind waiting,.......................much.
phil
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patience: I want a whole bunch of that - right now!
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patience: I want a whole bunch of that - right now!
Right now....what\'s happening...?
Hope all is well.
phil
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\"tongue in cheek\" Phil. Just kidding.
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\"tongue in cheek\" Phil. Just kidding.
I\'m slow somtimes.
I took a couple of pictures this afternoon of the young birds,
they were resting in the bush, so not really great shots,
the one pullet however, the picture is quite nice. Couldn\'t get the
little wheaten cockerel, just his head.
phil
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Hi Y\'all,
I don\'t wish to hijack this thread and am hoping this question runs along side the OP\'s original question.
With regard to the beard color, has anyone identified a specific trait to look for that will increase the color in one\'s offspring? For example I was told that the Ameraucanas store their egg color in their face, comb, and shanks. Is there anything in particular that I could look for to increase the black beard in the Wheaten or the blue-gray in the BW?
All of my 16 month old roosters have a lot of white still under the beak. I\'d say they\'re 75-80% proper color and the rest is white.
Thanks in advance.
God Bless,
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For example I was told that the Ameraucanas store their egg color in their face, comb, and shanks.
That sounds like something picked up on the Backyard Poultry forum, aka the electronic poultry misinformation highway. Here is a link to a scientific paper dealing with the synthesis of blue shell pigment: http://ps.fass.org/cgi/reprint/85/3/546.pdf
A quick reading of the abstract indicates the pigment biliverdin is responsible for the blue color, and that it is most likely synthesized in the shell gland and then deposited in the eggshell. The face, comb, and shanks have nothing to do with it.
With regard to your question about muff color in wheaten and blue wheaten males, I try to select female breeders with good slate undercolor, at least on the back. I also try to use males that develop good black or blue muffs without brown or beige in them. Careful selection of breeders over a period of years will help. But it will probably always take a relatively long time for the male muffs to fully change to the proper color. This is not a good variety for the impatient.
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I have a 2 1/2 year old roo that still has a lot of cream in the \"roots\" of his beard & muffs, too. Dunno if that will ever change. That might be for always with him ???
This roo has wattles (though pretty small) & not very full muffs & beard. Do you think there is any connection between the lack of fullness & the persistent cream color?
I don\'t mind the cream color too much, but I do hope to have a Wheaten or Blue Wheaten roo some day with more full feathering around his face. This roo that I have does have some other very nice qualities I like though, including nice bright coloring throughout the rest of his body.
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No connection between lack of muff size and color. From your description, were he mine, he would have been in the stew pot long ago. But I guess it all depends on ones goals.
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Royce didn\'t get the info about Ameraucanas storing their egg color agent in their face, comb, shanks and feet from Backyard Poultry-it came from me, (Paul Smith). Mike, you shared that info with me about 8 or 9 years ago. You also said when the birds ran out of stored coloring agent, they would lay a lighter \"washed out\" or \"faded\" egg.
It looks as if we can label this a myth and put it away. Unfortunately I shared the info with many during the past years.
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Paul, there must have been some misunderstanding as to what was said. The yellow pigment, , a form of xanthophyll, actually is stored in the skin. As a hen lays more and more eggs, the xanthophyll is drained from the system, deposited in the yolks, and the yellow skinned legs and skin become pale. The egg yolks would become paler also. It is re-established in the system while the birds are not laying by eating plant material that contains it, such as green grass, corn, etc. For that reason a willow shanked bird that is a good layer will often change to a slate shanked bird, since the yellow part that makes up willow disappears. It does not change genetically, however. I do not remember ever saying blue is stored in the visible parts of a chicken; if it did, why would the legs not become pale after an Ameraucana lays lots of eggs? I am truly sorry if I misled you.
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As a hen lays more and more eggs, the xanthophyll is drained from the system, deposited in the yolks, and the yellow skinned legs and skin become pale. The egg yolks would become paler also.
I understand this to be what is referred to as the \"bleaching sequence\". I was under the impression that this is responsible for the shell color fading as the laying season progresses. Is this the case or is something else responsible for this?
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Xanthophyll is yellow pigment, and I assume you are referring to the biliverdin pigment that causes blue shell.
Whatever chemicals are needed for the sythesis of biliverdin by the shell gland apparently are depleted during the laying cycle as well. Some have claimed that feeding foods high in copper will help increase/sustain blue shell color, but I have not tried it and have no proof. If you have ever seen a copper sulfate solution you would know why this might be considered a valid theory to test out.
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xanthophyll is drained from the system, deposited in the yolks,
Not to get too far off track here, but speaking of those rich golden colored yolks that many thing should be the norm...aren\'t. Pale yellow yokes are normal for most chickens. Feeds rich in xanthophyll (like marigolds) will add richer and darker color to the yokes (& the skin of yellow skinned birds) and it helps folks sell eggs to the suburbanites, just like at least one company does to make the skin of their chicken meat extra yellow. Is a brown or blue shelled egg with a dark yoke any better for you than a white shelled egg with a pale yellow yoke? It\'s all about marketing.
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I love the look of the orange yolk, not sure that it makes it any more nutritious, just looks better to me. I can\'t get Purina Layena here in Vermont, but I loved it for the marigold content.
In the deep cold part of winter, when it is -30 here, I cut down Hemlock branches and put them inside the coops. The poultry loves to eat the needles and even that little bit of green adds a bit of color to the yolks.