Poultry Talk Ontario (pto.ca)

Hi Guys --- everything I have read says that Silkies have black beaks and legs... two of the four chicks I bought have yellow. Everything else about them says Silkies ... is this possible ?

Thanks for any responses !!!!

Yes, of course. At some point in the distant or recent past, their ancestors were crossbred with a bird with wrong beak/leg colour. Then crossed back to silkies creating the bird you now have. What you have is officially a "silkie cross" and cannot be relied upon to "breed true to type". If the rooster you use is a good example of a silkie (beak/leg colour, body shape, feathers etc.) and the hens are these birds then most off spring will be true to type. Even breeding birds that are true to type you will have bad characteristics that will show up in offspring, known as throwbacks. Or you will have a chick that is way different than their parents; thus the term mutants. This is how silkies and all other breeds were developed in the first place from jungle fowl.

From a flock of Chinese ringneck pheasants a few birds had strange feather colours: they were bred and created a strain known as melanistic mutants.

Depending on your needs/breeding plans these birds are fine or should be sold/culled.

It is not the breed standard, however, sometimes with newer colours you get the odd one with the right feather colour but a difference in leg/skin colour. In paint silkies, it's not entirely uncommon to have 'pigment holes' where toes and occasionally beaks are lighter...but they do darken as they grow.

Can you post pics of your chicks?

The Fm, fibromelanotic gene that causes black in the skin and tissues, is influenced by other genes. So the colour of your silkie and the genetic background of that collour will affect the amount of black in the skin, as the Baron said. For example if your silkie is wheaten based, they will not be as black.

We have them just as "pets" no plans to show them ... and I am thinking that they are probably silkie-crosses... funny though the hens both have black beaks and feet... the roosters have the yellow. Thanks for the responses and sorry it took me so long to thank you for talking the time to answer. We are newbies in chickens but really enjoying them.