The Blue Bantam Orpington

My main Blue stud cockerel ( pictured above ) is from Rob Boyds exhibition winning blood line.

( Keithsorps homebred 2010 Blue cockerel and pullet )

The Blue Gene

Blue is an Incomplete Dominant gene.

If a bird carries a single Blue gene it will appear Blue but if it carries two Blue genes it will appear Splash.

Because the Blue gene is not sex linked you will get an even spread of colours through both sexes in the chicks hatched.

Blue birds come in many shades from a very light powder Blue to a very dark almost Black Blue depending on how much Black is in the genetic make up of the individual bird.

Orpingtons cockerels should have a dark slate Blue hackle, saddle, wing bow, back and tail with the rest of the plumage a mid slate Blue with each feather having a dark lacing.

Orpington hens should match the plumage of the lower half of the cockerel being a mid slate Blue, each feather being darker laced and the head and neck a dark slate Blue.

I beleive that the Splash birds bred from the Blue matings are beautiful in their own right and because they are usualy bred from quality Black and Blue stock tend to be of a very good type and for this reason are great for those wishing to try new colours as any birds bred from a single Splash parent will be Blue as they are carrying a single copy of the Blue gene.

Blue x Blue = 25% Black/ 25% Splash/ 50% Blue

Black x Blue = 50% Black/ 50% Blue

Black x Splash = 100% Blue

Blue x Splash = 50% Blue/ 50% Splash 

CLICK ON THE LINKS BELOW TO SEE WHAT GENES THE BLUE ORPINGTON BANTAMS CARRY