Splash color Muscovy ducks

[dotporter]

I've been breeding for splash in Muscovy for a few years.

she is molting, and was grumpy about being handled.

• dotporter
• Oct 1, 2014

You can compare the photo from years ago to the above photo of one of the current hens. The splash pattern still isn't amazing, I've had to go slow because I don't want inbreeding. So, even after years, the splash isn't as prominent as I'd like. But, it is actually splash.

It's flecks of black on lighter colored feathers, as if someone had flicked black paint at the bird. Though, some of the black flecks on the upper back are just black feather shafts on lighter colored feathers.

Has anyone else had, seen, or worked on splash Muscovy?

 

[The Moonshiner]

Interesting. Never heard of anyone working with them.
What's a "splash" muscovy?
What's the genetics behind them?

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

I've never heard of the splash color in muscovies.

 

[dotporter]

Interesting. Never heard of anyone working with them.
What's a "splash" muscovy?
What's the genetics behind them?

Let me try to make a long story short. I got the idea from the chickens and from slate turkeys that if I could work out the dilution in Muscovy maybe they'd have some form of splash as well. Alright so the idea occurred AFTER getting a random splash looking duck and researching a bit.

While I realize that splash in many poultry is specifically a gene for color (blue, I believe), I'm not sure in Muscovy. It's definitely black flecks on lighter colored feathers as if someone splashed some paint at them. It is also a repeatable characteristic.

The genetics right now are consistently blue (including silver), lavender, and dusky. I've eliminated all of the other genetics that were mixed in (barred, white, canizie, etc...).

That's why I'd love to talk to anyone else with one. It may have Nothing to do with color and just be a sport that worked out.

 

[learycow]

Splash in chickens (from my understanding) is a diluted blue and tends to be a light blue bird with darker blue speckles.

In ducks, "splash" is called silver. It is common for blues (diluted black) to have black spots or random black feathers. So silver (which is a diluted blue) can have blue or black spots or random feathers. That's what your "splash" bird appears to be.

Once you mix lavender into the blues it will jumble colors and genetics. Lavender combined with blue makes a "light lavender". Tough to differentiate from lavender or silver unless you do some test breeding. So most lavender breeders try not to combine these two colors.

Dusky isn't a color but is a gene that is easily detected as babies. Some juveniles show it also, but it tends to molt out so it tough to know if adults have the gene or not. Again, can be proven with selective test breeding though.

 

[The Moonshiner]

In chickens blue is a dilute gene. One copy dilutes black to blue. Two copies dilutes black to blue and then blue to splash.
In ducks its the same. One copy makes blue a second copy makes silver.
I think we're all on the same page there.
In chickens yes splash is a very light blue to white bird with various amounts of "splashed" specks of blue.
I've only had a very few silver muscovies but they all looked mostly a lighter blue with splotches of really light blue or white.
So kinda the opposite of the chickens.
I thought maybe you were selective breeding for more so and larger light splotches so they looked overall light with smaller spots of the light blue.
Mixing lavender in is interesting. That should lighten them up and getting a closer look to the splash birds.
Keep posting you're progress.
I might even end up with some lavender on blue and splash myself with next years hatches. The only male I have and hatched from this year is a lavender (which apparently carries chocolate) so I hatched blacks, blues and chocolates. All carry lavender and most are also pied.
They should make some interesting combinations next year when they're mature and breeding.

 

[dotporter]

@learycow
You bring up many great points.

You really seem to know your colors. I'd only argue the point that I've never heard a silver Muscovy called splash. I've heard them called pearl gray, but not splash.

I love breeding pastels. In the beginning there was the argument that lavender is really just silver or blue. Show people a pair of lavs with lav babies and they'd just say "So, they're silver. Silver to silver only makes silver."

The obvious route was to breed out pastels to prove the gene.

It turns out I adore the pastel colors.

It's not as hard as people think to tell the colors apart. Lavender is similar to silver but has more of a reddish cast. It also has a matte finish (almost dusty looking). For light lavender it's easiest to identify them as chicks. The down is distinctly lighter than that of silver.

The splash thing though: I can't find any online references to the silver having black discoloration. I know that any color of Muscovy can have random black feathers (generally a trait of inbreeding). But, the actual speckles of black on a colored background?

Out of the thousands of silvers I've hatched, not one has exhibited the "so called splash" trait until the introduction of lavender. Do you have any sites or photos that I could take a look? I'd truly be interested.

As for dusky? I know the whole it turns down brown. While researching dusky I had to go through hoops to prove that it wasn't chocolate or me messing with photoshop or maybe even some rare American Bronze.

But, I'm going to have to go through my photo journals and find some of the dusky pastels. Dusky does affect adult coloration to a minor degree. In blue and silver it can cause rust discolorations. In black in causes increased iridescent coloration. In pastels it creates an effect much like tortora or fume from other countries.

It's gorgeous.

And, I do realize your point that the black discolorations may normally be viewed as a flaw or sport.

But, I'd really love to develop a true splash Muscovy.

Thanks in advance if you have some references that I can look at.

Dot.

 

[dotporter]

@ the moonshiner
I'd love to see if you do get splash!

I'm selectively breeding for more black speckles. The lavender lightens the bird up nicely. The problem is that I haven't gotten any black speckles on any other than the blue lav combo.

You bring up a good point though. I haven't tried to do blue splash on a lighter colored background. I wonder if that is possible?

That would be Gorgeous.

Dot.

 

[dotporter]

This is a light lav dusky baby. The dusky comes out as orange in pastels.

This one is a silver lav. Believe me, if either parent had had barred or if they had white, this little lovely could be mistaken for either.

Both of these babies are from parents who showed some pretty good splash pattern. I'm hoping they all show true for the trait.

 

[Miss Lydia]

They are beautiful

@learycow might be interested in this thread she breeds Muscovy