Egg Color 2.0

[Michele Cram]

I was reading in an old thread about egg color.  I wanted to post in it but the warning came up saying it's an old thread and I had better start a new one .     I believe it was John who wrote that it was hard to deal with greenish eggs versus white eggs.  My question is what is the simplest way to less 'green' my eggs. My eggs have a nice light blue green tint.  None of the eggs are especially dark though.

[John W Blehm]

I was reading in an old thread about egg color.  I wanted to post in it but the warning came up saying it's an old thread and I had better start a new one .     I believe it was John who wrote that it was hard to deal with greenish eggs versus white eggs.  My question is what is the simplest way to less 'green' my eggs. My eggs have a nice light blue green tint.  None of the eggs are especially dark though.

With a relatively small group, like this, I don't heed the warnings and often resurrect old topics.  If you find is again, please paste a link to it in this topic so we can refer back to it.
Brown egg color comes in many shades from a light tint to very dark chocolate brown.  I believe having the light green tint that you mention can be selected against in breeders to end up with a better light blue.  Identify your chicks that hatch from the bluest eggs by toe punching or some other means.  Then breed only from them...both cockerels and pullets, if possible.  Often I've noticed that blue eggs have a nice gloss/shine to them, so I select for that and against eggs with dull/flat color. 
I'm more interested in having blue eggs from light to dark first and then concentrate on the shade of blue if you wish.  Even though I feel the natural blue chicken egg is a light pastel blue many feel a darker blue is more attractive.     

[Michele Cram]

Thank you John.  I appreciate your advice and thoughts on this. 

[John W Blehm]

One of my LF lavenders laid this very dark blue egg the other day.  The eggs around it are what I consider nice light blue eggs, although a bit dirty.  The very dark one looks blue to me also, without any green, but even though there is some shine from the flash it has a very dull/flat color.  I assume it was a long time in development and that would have caused the extra dark color.

[Mike Gilbert]

That is pretty intense blue color.   Pullets usually lay a darker egg, and then they gradually fade as more eggs are laid.   Is there any chance this was a pullet just coming into lay?    If not, it might pay to identify the specific bird and line breed her to see if you can keep that color going in future generations.   I would think such chicks would command a premium price. 

[John W Blehm]

That is pretty intense blue color.   Pullets usually lay a darker egg, and then they gradually fade as more eggs are laid.   Is there any chance this was a pullet just coming into lay?    If not, it might pay to identify the specific bird and line breed her to see if you can keep that color going in future generations.   I would think such chicks would command a premium price.

There are close to 20 pullets in that coop/pen.  I don't know which eggs come from which girls.  One lays an ugly green egg and one lays a very small egg and neither of those eggs gets incubated.  I assume all the pullets have been laying for a couple months now, but it is possible this dark blue egg came from one that just laid her first egg or maybe one that is starting to lay again after a hiatus.  The egg went into the incubator on Monday evening and in 3 weeks I'll see if a chick comes from it.

[Tailfeathers]

I have 2 pullets laying the best blue eggs I've ever had.  Judging from John's pic, I'd say it's probably the same.  If I can remember, I'll try to take a pic of them with my others and post here too.

The bad news is, like John, I've got 20 some pullets now so don't know which ones they are.  The good news is I don't have any yellow-legged birds left.  The bad news is I'm pretty sure most of what I've got left are heterozygous leg color. 

The good news is I've got 3dz EE eggs to set Saturday that are W rooster over Buckeye hens to test leg color and start my Red project.  The bad news is I'm probably 2-3mos out knowing whether the rooster is Homozygous or not.

Super excited to find out if he's homozygous because I've got a bunch of pullets that have unbelievable full colored tails AND a lot of wing color.  Dwayne, if you see this, I found 3 pullets that have even more wing color than in those pics I sent you!

[Michele Cram]

This is funny.  I think we might all be in the same boat on identifying which pullet.  I also have some Black Copper Marans.  One consistently lays a 7-8 on the scale.  I think I know which one she is..or not.

[Suki]

it is possible this dark blue egg came from one that just laid her first egg or maybe one that is starting to lay again after a hiatus.  The egg went into the incubator on Monday evening and in 3 weeks I'll see if a chick comes from it.

So what happened?

[Tailfeathers]

This showed up in my "Unread's" today.  I don't know why I didn't say this before and I don't know if I mentioned it in that "older thread" or not so I'll mention it here because I, personally, think it's an important thing to consider.

When I first started out with my birds I had several green egg layers.  I mean more green than blue.  A couple years into breeding I had 2 BW hens that laid white eggs.  One had a VERY light blue tint to it but for all intents and purposes one could call it white.  I used those hens to color test my roosters.

By "color test" I mean to cover those two girls to see what their pullets laid.  Not knowing a thing about whether the rooster had anything to do with egg color it was just something I tried.  I remember one of those roosters produced a tannish looking egg.  That told me that he was passing on what I call "brown egg gene modifiers".  I honestly don't recall if I came up with that on my own or whether I saw someone else say it.

All that is to say I'm pretty sure the rooster plays a part, I'm guessing 50%, in offspring egg color.  Part of my breeding program is to develop a "stud".  A cockbird that I can keep for years to then linebreed successive generations of females.  Of course, I would keep a female if I got one that was exceptional but my goal is to get an exceptional male that I can cover numerous females with for years.  Then no more feeding males until they're a year old to see whether they're a keeper.  Unfortunately I'm not quite there yet.  However, there's always this year!

So all that is shared just as something to consider if you haven't already. 

One other additional side note.  All this brings up the importance, once again, of evaluating your birds and then putting a breeding plan together - I recommend a 5yr plan - that prioritizes what traits you are attempting to "fix". By that I mean "fix" as in "set".  Ya just can't fix everything at once.  Personally, I've not prioritized egg color as the judges could care less about egg color and from what I've read nobody is still, to this day, even sure what all is involved in egg color.  But, if your goal is to get the bluest eggs I think John's advice is spot on.  Breed the bluest to the bluest.  Make that your #1 Priority in your Breeding Plan and toe punch accordingly.

[Michele Cram]

Thanks Royce.  I have a had a set back over the winter with my silvers.  I lost my two 'good' roosters this winter. I am working with a really young rooster that doesn't seem to know what to do.  I might be throwing in the towel on the silvers.

[Tailfeathers]

Sorry to hear that.  It's always something.  Will you be at the show in 2wks?  I looked at my BW rooster today.  The girls have about picked his beard clean.  Go figure.  And my Wheaten has one eye put out.  I entered both of them and a hen each.  Looking at them today I'm not even sure I'll have anything in condition to take but I'll pick something out to bring.

[Suki]

  Personally, I've not prioritized egg color as the judges could care less about egg color and from what I've read nobody is still, to this day, even sure what all is involved in egg color.

And if you are showing a male who knows what he throws, which is why I think most show cocks.  I guess you did not hear about the Knoxville TN show -- I think it was that one -- where for the Ams someone substituted a white egg for a lavender and the girl got disqualified?  And then of course there was the Am that went missing.....

[John W Blehm]

I see it was 3 years ago that a LF lavender pullet's 1st egg had an "intense" dark color.  Well it happened again, yesterday.  It is next to some Ameraucana bantam eggs to show the contrast.

[Mindy Waters]

Wow! That's a lot of pigment. I got a fluke egg very similar to that from an established layer.