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Breeding / The word medium in regard to Ameraucana
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on May 03, 2025, 09:30:35 PM »
The word used most frequently in the standard verbiage for the male and female Ameraucana shape is medium.

How is the word medium defined, and what does the word medium mean in regard to our Ameraucana?

Medium is defined as:
✅️The middle quality or state between two extremes; a reasonable balance. Average.
✅️A middle condition, state or degree.

What does this word mean regarding our Ameraucana?

It means no single attribute should stick out to you on a Ameraucana when you are making your way down an aisle at a show hall or when you are observing your Ameraucana in your breeding pens.
 
"Medium" is what makes an Ameraucana beautiful.

Would you like some feedback on how the word medium applies to some of the features on your Ameraucana?

The feathers making up the muffs and beard on our Ameraucana should be medium in length and not excessively long nor short. You want to be able to see the expressive eyes on your Ameraucana. We should avoid muffs and beard that are full and fluffy like that of a Faverolle.

When viewed from the side, the main tail feathers on our Ameraucana females (usually seven on each side) should be medium in length and well spread. They should be neither fan shaped nor pinched together.
The back length on our Ameraucana should be medium, as should the body.

The feathering on our Ameraucana should be medium. This means your Ameraucana should be neither soft/loosely feathered nor hard/tightly feathered. To learn about differences in feathering, observe a Cornish which is tightly feathered and Cochin which is soft and loosely feathered.

Hopefully this post gives you a little guidance and insight as you begin assessing your sexually mature Ameraucana.

Do you have any additional questions or feedback on this post? Send me a PM.
42
Breeding / The blue gene in regard to black Ameraucana Q and A Session
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on May 03, 2025, 09:28:38 PM »
Question:
Can my black Ameraucana carry the blue gene and blue Ameraucana pop up later in my black Ameraucana pen?

Answer:
No. If a black Ameraucana has the blue gene, you will see it in the plumage color of the bird. The blue gene is always expressed in the phenotype of black Ameraucana if the bird carries it.

The blue gene (Bl) is a diluting gene. It is known as an autosomal incomplete dominant gene.

In its heterozygous form (one copy of the Bl gene), black feathers are diluted to create blue plumage. In its homozygous form (two copies of the Bl gene), black feathers are diluted to create splash plumage. The non-mutated version is black.
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Breeding / Comparing Ameraucana to the Standard in regard to shank color
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on May 03, 2025, 09:27:12 PM »
Good example photos of why we should wait to compare our Ameraucana to the approved Standards with the APA and ABA until sexual maturity.

The approved color varieties of Ameraucana are built on various e locus alleles and contain plumage color genes that affect their shank color as day olds and at maturity.

The E locus alleles affect the relative distribution of melanin pigmentation in the epidermis.

Wheaten Ameraucana are built on eWh. The eWh allele is known to reduce the expression of dermal melanin. Dermal melanin comes in slowly on eWh chicks and can take anywhere from four to sixteen weeks to come in. This is why wheaten and blue wheaten chicks are born with flesh colored shanks and toes that gradually turn slate with age.

Black Ameraucana and self blue Ameraucana are typically built on Extended black (E). E extends melanic pigment to the shanks and enhances dermal melanin. Give any gaps in pigment on shanks and toes time to fill in prior to culling. The shanks and toes of black and self blue Ameraucana should be slate to black at maturity. 

Splash Ameraucana have two copies of the Blue gene. The Bl gene not only dilutes plumage color, it also dilutes shank color. The shanks and toes of our splash Ameraucana should be bluish slate at maturity.

Hopefully this post will help you as you are assessing your Ameraucana and comparing them to the approved Standards with the APA and ABA.
44
Breeding / Ameraucana eye color
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on May 03, 2025, 09:26:00 PM »
Question:
Help! My 3 month old Ameraucana chickens do not have reddish bay eye color yet. Is this a problem?

Answer:
The standard was written for sexually mature birds. Ameraucana pullets and cockerels that have grey or green eye color are typically headed in the right direction to achieve reddish bay eye color. Pullets or cockerels with brown or black eyes will not achieve correct eye color.

45
Breeding / Working with whites in the erm project color Q and A session
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on May 03, 2025, 09:25:10 PM »
Question:
I am working with the erm project color which has one copy of the dominant white gene. What is the best way to create a solid white phenotype on birds with two copies of the dominant white gene? Can those birds be entered at poultry shows?

Answer:
Plumage color descriptions in the APA and ABA standards are based on phenotype, not genotype.

This means whites created from working with the erm project can be entered as white Ameraucana at poultry shows. You may find that the type, plumage color, and shank color is better on white Ameraucana entered that are derived from the recessive white gene.

Homozygousity for dominant white increases the chance of a solid white phenotype. Do you want to improve it further? Homozygosity for the Extended black allele is also helpful. Extended black allele shifts melanin production toward eumelanogenesis, which in turn is severely inhibited by the effect of Dominant white. The Dominant white gene can remove epidermal shank pigment and dilute dermal pigment. A scientific study found that slate shanks can be achieved on dominant white birds that are homozygous for the Extended black allele and id+.

The sex-linked Silver locus is also helpful in creating a solid white phenotype in dominant white birds. It inhibits the expression of red pheomelanin.
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News and Information / Re: The club is current.
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on April 29, 2025, 10:42:15 PM »
Marketplace shipments are current. Thanks for your support of the ABC.
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Ameraucana Marketplace / Upcoming Spring 2025 hatches Tuesday April 29th and Tuesday May 13th
« Last post by Paul on April 25, 2025, 09:37:13 AM »
 We set our last hatch for our spring 2025 hatches.  Set 658 eggs-211 self blue from 25 breeding pens, 35 self blue split from 10 breeding pens, 106 black from 10 breeding pens, 58 blue from 10 breeding pens, 58 splash from 5 breeding pens, 55 white from 6 breeding pens, 49 Opal Legbars from 5 breeding pens and 86 layer Legbars from 3 breeding pens.
  This is the first year in over 20 years that we have not fully booked-up for our spring hatches.  We retain and raise all chicks that are not sent out at hatching.  We have plenty good quality chicks to keep our breeding poultry project strong and there are two more hatches, Tuesday April 29th and Tuesday May 13th.  Stopping on May 13th will give us more time for tending our 2 acre garden and work our tree service.
  If you want some day old Ameraucana or Legbar chicks or hatching eggs email us psmith@ntin.net or text your email address or call Paul @ 940-768-8405
Thanks,
Paul & Angela
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Exhibiting & Promoting / Re: Splash Bantam APA recognition?
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on April 21, 2025, 02:09:10 PM »
Good luck. Please send me some pics of them showing if you are able to do so. 🙂
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Exhibiting & Promoting / Re: Splash Bantam APA recognition?
« Last post by Mitchell Taylor on April 17, 2025, 07:51:57 PM »
Thank you for all the information, the kids really enjoy them so we will definitely have to look up some ABA shows for the fall and season.
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Exhibiting & Promoting / Re: Splash Bantam APA recognition?
« Last post by Lindsay Helton on April 17, 2025, 06:54:34 PM »
Yes, they are only accepted with the ABA.

So, bantam splash can win Best of Breed at ABA sanctioned shows, and then technically, an additional approved variety should be selected for Best of Breed at APA sanctioned shows.

Unfortunately the ABC doesn't have enough bantam splash breeders to seek acceptance for the variety with the APA. I believe we were at around 3% of the club raising them last time I went through our information.
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