Marans Color VarietiesĪccepted Marans color varieties vary by country. They are also noted for being less docile than the full-size Marans. They tend to lay limited quantities of cream to light brown eggs. They weigh in as follows.īantam Marans are not accepted into the breed standard in the U.S. Full-Size Maransįull-size Marans are a dual-purpose breed with both fine meat and excellent egg qualities. and Australia, bantam Marans are also available. In France and other countries including the U.K. only full-size Marans have been accepted into the standards. They will generally lay about 200 eggs per year. In some color varieties toe-feathering is optional.Īdditionally, to truly qualify as French Marans, hens should have good production of large to extra-large, dark chocolate brown eggs. Marans have single combs that vary in size, red earlobes, and bay to orange-red irises. They are often referred to as rustic in appearance. Wings should be short and close to the body.
#BLACK COPPER MARANS FULL#
Body conformation should be rectangular, boat-shaped, elongated and wide, with a short, full tail at no more than a 45° angle to the body. In terms of general appearance, Marans should be medium height giving an overall impression of robustness. However, many specialized breeders are presently working on perfecting their stock. Today, that very storied and colorful breed history makes it difficult to find Marans that check all the boxes of the original French standards. Due to all those unknown feral origins and champion rooster and Asiatic breed crossings, those productivity-driven crosses usually led to light tinted eggs and chickens better suited to confinement. Meanwhile, other breeders attempted to remake this free-range favorite Marans more marketable by crossing the breed with heavier Russian chickens. Thankfully, a few determined breeders kept the pre-WWII Marans from falling into genetic obscurity. The breeding stock that remained after the war was closer to the early Marandaise chickens that existed before the breed conformed to poultry standards.Īlso, during that time, industrial chickens were on the rise making free-ranging farm breeds with unique egg color and slower meat production less popular. Unfortunately, in World War II, the Germans occupied France and the breed was nearly decimated. The breed enjoyed several years of popularity and further improvement for egg production and appearance uniformity. In 1929, her standardization efforts led to the formal recognition of the Marans chickens as a breed in France. In the 1920’s a famous French poultry breeder, Madam Marthe Rousseau-Charpentier, began breeding the country chickens for the darkest eggs possible with a secondary focus on consistent plumage. In 1914, the first Marans brown egg layer made its poultry show debut under the category of “country chicken”. He flooded the region with Langshans and other Asiatic class breeding stock which crossed with the local Maransdaise chickens. Louis Rouillé, an amateur breeder, became enamored with the white-legged, well-fleshed Langshans and their beautiful eggs. Those crossings earned the Maransdaise free-range chickens some early repute for their fine meat quality and pretty, red brown egg production. Locals used those champions to cross breed with their “swamp hens”.
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