The Literary Ladies are now 22 weeks old. Twiggy has been laying almost daily for a month, and true to her White Leghorn breeding has taken only three days off in that time. Her eggs are bright white, long and smooth as polished shells washed up on the beach. The other hens have been slower to mature, but I’ve been expecting to see eggs from the Ameracaunas, Owly
and Beatrix,
because they’ve been squatting when they see me – sure signs that they are now fully grown.
Two days ago Beatrix left this egg in the nesting box. It is a dull green with a hint of blue.
Ameracaunas are not true blue egg layers like Araucanas. Also known as “Easter Eggers”, the Ameracauna is a mix of breeds, sure to lay colorful eggs, but you never know where on the spectrum from olive-brown to robin’s egg blue they’ll be until they start laying. (I’ve explained how eggs get the colors they do here.)
I haven’t seen Owly in the nesting boxes, but I’m sure that she too, is laying, not because I’ve collected two colorful eggs from one box, but because I’ve found one that is bluer and not as pointy; they are obviously from different hens. Here are the eggs, side-by-side. Both are beautiful in their own subtle way.
Neither of my Ameracaunas are interested in their eggs after they’ve been laid. They hop right down and go back outside. But, Betsy Ross, being a bantam, has gone broody and has huffed up and is trying as best that she can to cover the bigs eggs (including Twiggy’s) with her tiny body. You can tell that her claim on the nesting boxes and her bad mood has annoyed the ladies because her comb has been pecked at. She doesn’t care a whit. She’ll sit there until the broody spell passes, which could be weeks.
Meanwhile, Phoebe, who has created a cozy home for herself under the nesting boxes, is unimpressed with the hens and their newfound productivity.
I’m so happy for you! It’s magical!
My Dorking cross, Pip, steadily lays about 4 beautiful pale blue eggs each week. My lovely little lavender Araucana, Lulu, gives me a green egg when she feels like it.
I never get over the joy of finding those eggs! (And all the others as well, of course! Lol) and have blown several to keep!
My ‘customers’ get very excited when they spot a blue egg in their box of eggs!
Enjoy, Terry!
Funny, how different people have different reactions to blue (and olive) eggs. I have bought my eggs from several different places (next spring, fingers crossed, I will have my own flock) in the last few years. I bought from one man until he capitalized on his quarter part Araucana by selling the blue eggs as “rare Chilean breed” eggs for 75c each (not impressed with the fact that he is taking advantage of folks that don’t know any better). Then I found the farmer that I buy from now. He is my favourite “egg man”. He is happy to let me “cherry-pick” his cartons to find blue and olive eggs from his pure bred Araucanas and his Ameraucanas, because he finds that a lot of people are put off by “odd-coloured ” eggs. It’s a real treat for me, because I blow out the eggs, make quiche or omelettes or scrambled eggs with the contents, and add the shells to the centrepiece bowl on my kitchen counter.
Owly was in the nesting box for a long time today, so if the pointed egg was today’s it’s hers.
LOL. Gotta love that Phoebe. She keeps everything in perspective
So wonderful! One of my new “babies” (Araucana Bantams) started laying 3 days ago and has produced 3 perfect, smooth little blue eggs each day. It is most wonderous because she is the one I almost culled when she had persistent pasty butt and a strangely formed vent. She had such a happy, friendly personality I just couldn’t do it, so decided to see how things went. As she has grown it became less severe, but she still has a messy behind much of the time. I was afraid there was something structurelly wrong, and feared egg laying might not be possible. But here she is, the first one to produce, and she and her eggs are perfect. Sometimes we just have to trust nature!
That’s nice to hear! I’ve no idea if this will help, but I’ve had much success with this treatment and messy bottoms.
Hmm I didn’t think leghorns went broody, though I guess any chicken can go.broody. my buff orpington is well over a year with no broodiness only my.silkies have gone broody I have a Jersey giant 2 Wynadotte a Polish a mottled houdan americianas 2 speckled Sussex 3 silkies 5 sexlinked 2leghorns 3month old.wellsummers and 4 BC Maran/americianas mix 1 bufforp
Standard-sized leghorns rarely go broody, but bantams do. There’s always exceptions to the rule. Amber, my BO, never goes broody, but the other BOs were constantly in the nesting boxes.
I saw Owly in the nest box this morning too and Beatrix yesterday or the day before…when Betsy wasn’t hogging up the limelight! My EE, Henny Penny, looks just like Owly and also lays lovely light blue eggs. They are so pretty I know that you must be excited to have the different colors in your egg basket. I can’t wait to see what color Veronica’s eggs are. :-)
Beautiful eggs!! I have an americauna (or i guess shes an EE) looks a lt like Owly. Not exact but some similarities. But she lays brown eggs. But that’s ok with me. I love her anyway. Beatrix is so beautiful such unusual coloring/markings. It’s so funny to see the bantams try to nest on the big eggs. A few weeks ago when my belgian duccle was broody I found her with 3 eggs from the big hens. She couldn’t fit them all under but she sure was trying lol! I love the bunny photo . Thx for sharing!
I am a sucker for the blue/green eggs. My supermarket used to carry them, but no longer. Yes, they were more expensive and I did know better, but they made me smile. I rationalized that they came in a six-pack which was a better size for my small household.
For a while, my farm source had some Ameracaunas. I checked each box for blues (no cherry picking). But a serendipitous crate with two instead of one was fair game. I always saved the blues to use last.
Thanks for the picture of Phoebe. I have not been on her schedule lately and missed her. Beginning to think she was camera shy.
Phoebe is on a classic bunny schedule – loll about during the day and play at dusk. She’s getting quite the fur coat, so I expect to see more action during the day when winter comes.
Just to clarify, the farmer that I buy my eggs from suggested that we go through his other cartons for blue eggs after I expressed my delight that the carton I had just purchased contained a blue egg and an olive egg. I would never “cherry pick” without invitation.
Awww, Terry, the eggs are so beautiful. I’ve waited a long time for this. I have never seen more beautiful hens than Beatrix and Owly. You look at Betsy and one has to say “Awww”. Such a sweet and loyal friend to Twiggy. Great post to end the day. Hope all have a good nite at Little Pond.
My girls have taken a month off from laying any eggs. I think it is a combination of HEAT(in Texas} and new coop. But they are precious. Congrats on the pretty eggs.
Heat and a change of coop will do it.
Terry I could swap two of my three Americanas I got this spring with your two and neither one of us would know the difference. The resemblance is amazing.
Ken, that’s so surprising, as I had 4 in my order, and they all looked so different from each other!
So ironic that you wrote this article! I literally JUST set a dozen (black split/lavender) Ameraucana eggs in the incubator!!
Amazing. So I am right to assume that some of the fun of new hens is the color of egg they will lay! Can’t wait to see Veronica’s egg color! Owly sure transformed from awkward looking chick to beautiful pullet! I am so looking forward to the 2014 Hencam calendar Terry! I can’t imagine how you will choose the photos for this next one!
Oh I forgot to ask, squatting, does that mean they like you? Is that a sign of egg laying maturity?
A hen squats for a rooster, so that he can mate. She also squats for me. I do not believe that she thinks me a rooster, or wants me to mate! I think that she recognizes my high status, and that I’m not another hen (hens don’t squat for other hens.)
So nice to see all the activity this morning. I finally had to shut down as I had chores to do. I love to see all the excitement when you are about with the kids.
TN Rebecca
I never tire of it, myself! With the cooler weather, Phoebe has been quite busy, too.