Green layer
Green layers are called domestic chickens that lay eggs with green to turquoise-colored eggshells. The bile pigment oocyan ensures the green color of the eggs . The Araucana breed became known as the first “green layer” .
Araucana inherit the ability to lay green eggs dominantly to their offspring. Hens bred to chickens or roosters of this breed always lay green eggs. In the poultry industry, this is used to obtain hens that lay many green eggs by crossing them with breeds with high laying performance. The crossing products are sold as green layers. If these animals are further bred, the green color of the eggs is lost again. If araucanas are crossed with chickens that lay brown eggs, the colors mix and the new generation lays olive-green eggs.
In addition to the green eggshell color, the Araucana also have other influences on the green-laying hybrids: the hens are rather small, they occasionally lack tail feathers or they are completely tailless .
White green-laying hen
olive green eggs from green layers
Blue green-laying hen
Javanese bantams also lay green eggs. They also carry genes of the Araucana.
The Swedish Isbar and the English Cream Legbar are known among others as green layers .
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proof
- ↑ a b Oocyan. Retrieved January 16, 2016 .
- ↑ Frank Allmer: Proud Roosters . and hard-working hens (= country life ). Cadmos Verlag, Brunsbek 2009, ISBN 978-3-86127-674-6 , Colorful eggs: Grünleger and Rotleger, p. 70-71 .
- ↑ a b Michael von Lüttwitz: Keeping chickens (= GU Tierratgeber ). Gräfe und Unzer, 2015, ISBN 978-3-8338-4846-9 .