Please Help Identify the New Chicks on the Block

I'm going to back up a little here.
(Probably be doing that a lot till I catch up!)


As we were down to only 6 hens (who weren't
laying well) I decided to order a new batch this year. 
They arrived May 1 and, as it often happens, I even 
received an extra.  Bonus!  I've never had this many!


It's a very good thing my dh built that 
great run a couple of years ago! 

I actually ordered 5 Buff Orpingtons, 
5 Black Stars and 5 Araucanas.  
Exhibit A:  Um, with those chest feathers, this isn't a Black Star or an Araucana.

I'm not sure what I have but, now that they are
10 weeks old, I'm pretty sure I didn't get my Araucanas--
at least not all 5 of them.
(Chicks are not that easy to identify as they 
lose feathers and change as they mature.)
Exhibit B

I've wanted Araucanas for quite a while,
especially for the different colored eggs.
We've only had brown egg layers.  

Exhibit C:  Will this turn into an Araucana?

Needless to say, I'm very disappointed.
Of course, I've now invested my time and money
in these so I guess we will make due.

Exhibit D:  My biggest hopes are on this one...

I'm not that familiar with very many breeds.
Certainly someone out there can identify for me?
Exhibit E

Please tell me at least one or two of these are 
Araucanas!?

Comments

Robin said…
I have not clue what your chickens are but they sure are cute and colorful.

Robin in Washington State
July 10, 2014 at 8:39 AM
janice said…
Exhibit B and C look exactly like Araucanas to me. I only have two and there black but they look just like yours. I'm sure you won't be disappointed
July 13, 2014 at 6:51 AM
Unknown said…
I hate to disappoint you but neither are true Araucanas. True Araucanas are difficult to breed because of a genetic issue and true Auracanas do not have tails. Don't be disappointed! What you have is a cross between "Ameraucanas" and different chicken breeds which are known as "Easter Eggers". I have 4 of them in my flock! I love them and they are so sweet and so friendly and their looks they give us when we talk to them are so hilarious! They cock their heads like they know exactly what you are saying! By far, they are a popular breed in Backyard Chickening and the most popular eggs in my batch when I am either selling them or giving them away. Everyone wants them! I have green/blue and green with brown speckles blue with brown speckles and blue eggs. And with an addition of marigold flowers in their diet or one of the Layer feeds that have marigold oil in them the yolks are just as pretty by being so bright orange. I get requests for only Easter Egger eggs even though the yolks in my white and brown eggs look the same as the Easter Eggers, but the different colored eggs are so popular with people and especially little kids. Enjoy your beautiful hens!
September 26, 2015 at 9:50 AM
mickig22 said…
That first one is a black star, some will have more gold color and some will have less or none (mine has a ton of gold, my mother-in-law's has a little just around her neck). The others are Easter eggers. Hatcheries incorrectly label their Easter eggers as araucanas. Easter eggers can potentially lay any color egg (blue, green, brown, cream, pink). One of mine lays green, but my other two lay brown (I was a little disappointed, I was hoping for all blue and green). I got a handful of Easter egger chicks this year and am hoping some will lay blue. :) I'm now realizing how old your post is...you have probably already figured it out 😆
June 7, 2016 at 3:31 PM
nightowl223 said…
Your "Araucanas" are definitely Easter Eggers, but that's okay! Easter Eggers are beautiful, and come in such varied and pretty colors and patterns!


Easter Eggers are, in reality, generally Ameraucanas that don't meet the color variation rules for Ameraucanas. (Sometimes they will be mixes of Araucanas and other breeds, which will create green, olive, or blue-ish eggs, but those are rarer, as true Araucanas are rarer birds than Ameraucanas are... so this is just an FYI for some other time, or for other people). There are very strict color/pattern rules for a bird to be considered an Ameraucana by a rules "committee" called the APA (American Poultry Association), and the rules are called the SOP (Standards of Perfection). Any bird with Ameraucana blood that doesn't meet the SOP rules us automatically an Easter Egger. Even pure Ameraucanas that DO meet the SOP pattern/color rules can breed chicks that won't meet the very strict color/pattern rules, and will be considered Easter Eggers. *shrug*


It's nearly impossible to get true Aracaunas in this country, and also very difficult to get true Ameraucanas, too - to actually get what you think you're getting, do NOT rely on feed store chicks to be what they're labeled, and do NOT rely on hatcheries to sell you the real thing, either. You have to find an actual breeder to get the real thing.


Easter Eggers are good layers, lovely to look at, and hardy birds. You have a great mixture of colors/patterns, and there is NO shame in having Easter Eggers rather than Ameraucanas (or especially Aracaunas)!
July 1, 2016 at 6:07 PM
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