Common Colours and Patterns

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

DESCRIPTIONS OF COMMON PLUMAGE COLORS AND COLOR PATTERNS

White

Color of Male and Female Plumage : Web, fluff, and quills of feathers, in all sections, pure white.

Black

Color of Male and Female Plumage: Surface, lustrous, greenish black; under-color except where otherwise specified, dull black in dark-legged varieties ; slate in yellow-legged varieties.

Buff

Color of Male and Female Plumage : Surface throughout an even shade of rich golden buff, the head, neck, hackle, back, wingbows and saddle richly lus trous in male and hackle of female showing some luster. Under color matching surface as near as possible.

Silver-Penciled

Color of Male

Head: Plumage, silvery white.

Neck: Hackle, web of feather, solid, lustrous, greenish black, of moderate width, with a narrow edging of silvery white, uniform in width, extending around point of feathers ; shafts, black ; plumage on front of neck, black.

Wings: Fronts, black ; bows, silvery white ; coverts, lustrous, greenish black, forming a well-defined bar of this color across wings when folded ; primaries, black except a narrow edging of white on lower edge of lower webs; secondaries, black, except lower half of lower webs, which should be white, except near end of feathers at which point the white terminates abruptly leaving end of feathers black; the secondaries when folded forming a white wing-bay between the wing-bar and tips of secondary feathers.

Back and Saddle: Silvery white on surface, free from brown; saddle, silvery white, with black stripe in each feather, tapering to a point near its lower extremity. A slight shafting of silver white permissible.

Tail: Main-tail feathers, black ; sickles and coverts, lustrous, greenish black; smaller coverts, lustrous, greenish black edged with white.

Breast: Lustrous greenish black.

Body and Fluff: Body, black; lower body feathers, black, slightly tinged with gray; fluff, black, slightly tinged with gray.

Legs and Toes: Lower thighs, black.

Under-Color of All Sections: Slate, shading lighter toward base of feather.

Color of Female

Head: Plumage, silvery gray.

Neck: Silvery white; center portion of feathers, black slightly penciled with steel gray; feathers on front of neck, same as breast.

Wings: Fronts, bows and coverts, steel gray with distinct, soft black pencilings, outlines of which conform to shape of feathers; primaries, black with narrow edge of steel-gray penciling on lower webs; secondaries, upper webs, black, lower webs steel-gray with distinct, soft black pencilings extending around outer edge of feathers.

Back: Steel-gray, with distinct, soft black pencilings, outlines of which conform to shape of feather; feathers, free from white shafting.

Tail: Main-tail feathers, black, except the two top feathers, which are gray on upper web, and penciled with soft black; coverts, steel-gray with distinct, soft black pencilings, outlines of which conform to shape of feather.

Breast: Steel-gray, with distinct, soft black pencilings, outlines of which conform to shape of feather.

Body and Fluff: Body, steel-gray, with distinct, soft black pencilings, reaching well down on lower thighs ; fluff, steel-gray, penciled with a darker shade.

Legs and Toes: Lower thighs, steel-gray, with distinct pencilings.

Under-Color of All Sections: Slate.

Note: Each feather in back, breast, body, wing-bows, and thighs to have three or more distinct pencilings. A sharp contrast between the dark pencilings and ground color is highly desirable.

Partridge

Color of Male

Head: Plumage, bright red.

Neck: Hackle, web of feather, solid, lustrous, greenish black of moderate width, with a narrow edging of a medium shade of rich, brilliant red, uniform in width, extending around point of feather; shaft, black; plumage on front of neck, black.

Wing: Fronts, black ; bows, a medium shade of rich, brilliant red; coverts, lustrous, greenish black, forming a well-defined bar of this color across wings when folded ; primaries, black, lower edges, reddish bay ; secondaries, black, outside webs, reddish bay, terminating with greenish black at end of each feather; the secondaries when folded forming a reddish bay wing-bay between the wing-bar and tips of the secondary feathers.

Back and Saddle: A medium shade of rich, brilliant red, with lustrous, greenish black stripe down the middle of each feather, same as in hackle. A slight shafting of rich red permissible.

Tail: Main-tail feathers, black; sickles and lesser sickles, lustrous greenish black ; coverts, lustrous, greenish black, edged with a medium shade of rich, brilliant red.

Breast: Lustrous greenish black.

Body and Fluff: Body, black; lower body feathers, slightlv tinged with red; fluff, black, slightly tinged with red.

Legs and Toes: Lower thighs, black.

Under-Color of All Sections : Slate.

Color of Female

Head: Plumage, deep, reddish bay.

Neck: Reddish bay ; center portion of feathers black; slightly penciled with deep reddish bay; feathers on front of neck, same as breast.

Wings: Fronts, bows, and coverts, deep reddish bay, with distinct pencilings of black, outlines of which conform to shape of feathers; primaries, black with edging of deep, reddish bay on outer webs; secondaries, inner webs, black, outer webs deep, reddish bay, with distinct pencilings of black extending around outer edge of feathers.

Back: Deep reddish bay, with distinct pencilings of black, the outlines of which conform to shape of feathers.

Tail: Main-tail feathers, black, except the two top feathers, which are deep reddish bay on the upper web penciled with black ; coverts, deep reddish bay penciled with black.

Breast: Deep reddish bay, with distinct pencilings of black, the outlines of which conform to shape of feathers.

Body and Fluff: Body, deep reddish bay, penciled with black; fluff, deep, reddish bay.

Legs and Toes: Lower thighs, deep reddish bay penciled with black.

Under-Color of All Sections: Slate.

Note: Each feather in back, breast, body, wing-bows, and thighs to have three or more distinct pencilings.

Columbian

Color of Male

Head: Plumage, white.

Neck: Hackle, web of feather, solid, lustrous, greenish black, moderately broad, with a narrow edging of silvery white, uniform in width, extending around point of feather; greater portion of shaft, black ; plumage on front of neck, white.

Wings: Fronts, white, may be partly black; bows and coverts, white; primaries, black, with white edging on lower edge of lower webs; secondaries, lower portion of lower webs, white, sufficient to form a white wing-bay, the white extending around ends of feathers and lacing upper portion of upper webs, this color growing wider in the shorter secondaries, sufficient to show white on surface when wing is folded; remainder of each secondary, black.

Back and Saddle: Surface, white; cape, black and white; saddle, white except lower saddle feathers, which should be white with a narrow V-shaped black stripe at end of each feather, tapering to a point near its lower extremity and extending from points of wing to root and sides of tail. This V-shaped stripe increasing in width, length and density as it nears the tail-coverts.

Tail: Main-tail feathers, black; the curling feathers underneath, black laced with white ; sickles and coverts, lustrous, greenish black; smaller coverts, lustrous, greenish black edged with silvery white.

Breast: White.

Body and Fluff: Body, white, except under wings, where it may be bluish slate; fluff, white.

Legs and Toes : Lower thighs, white.

Under-Color of All Sections : Light bluish slate.

Color of Female

Head: Plumage, white.

Neck: Feathers beginning at juncture of head, web a broad, solid, lustrous, greenish black, with a narrow lacing of silvery white extending around the outer edge of each feather; greater portion of shaft, black; feathers on front of neck, white.

Wings: Fronts, bows, and coverts, white ; primaries, black with white edging on lower edge of lower webs; secondaries, lower portion of lower webs, white, sufficient to secure a white wing-bay, the white extending around the end and lacing upper portion of upper webs, this color growing wider in the shorter secondaries, sufficient to show white on surface when wing is folded; remainder of each secondary, black.

Back: White; cape, black and white.

Tail: Main-tail feathers, black, except the two top feathers, which are slightly edged with white; coverts, black with a narrow lacing of white.

Breast: White.

Body and Fluff: Body white, except under wings where it may be bluish slate; fluff, white.

Legs and Toes: Lower thighs, white.

Under-Color of All Sections: Light bluish slate.

Blue

Color of Male

Head: Plumage, very dark, lustrous blue.

Neck: A clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with very dark, lustrous blue.

Wings: Fronts and bows, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with very dark, lustrous blue; coverts, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather having a sharply-defined lacing of darker blue; primaries, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue laced with darker blue; secondaries, inner webs, a clear, even shade of slaty blue, outer webs, slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with darker blue.

Back and Saddle: A clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with very dark, lustrous blue.

Tail: Main-tail feathers, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with dark, lustrous blue: sickles, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with very dark, lustrous blue ; tail-coverts, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with very dark, lustrous blue.

Breast: A clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather having a sharply defined lacing of darker blue.

Body and Fluff: Body, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather having a sharply defined lacing of darker blue; fluff, slaty blue, laced with darker blue.

Legs and Toes: Lower thighs, a clear, even shade of slaty blue, each feather having' a sharply denned lacing of darker blue.

Under-Color of All Sections: Slaty blue.

Color of Female

Head: Plumage, slaty blue.

Neck: A clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, sharply laced with darker blue.

Wings: Fronts, bows and coverts, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather having a sharply defined lacing of darker blue; primaries, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue; remainder of wing an even shade of slaty blue, darker than that of primaries; feathers in all sections except primaries, sharply laced with darker blue.

Back: A clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather having a sharply defined lacing of darker blue.

Tail: A clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather laced with a darker blue.

Breast: A clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather having a sharply defined lacing of a darker blue.

Body and Fluff: Body, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue, each feather having a sharply defined lacing of darker blue; fluff, a clear, even, medium shade of slaty blue.

Legs and Toes : Lower thighs, slaty blue, each feather sharply laced with a darker blue.

Under-Color of All Sections : Slaty blue.

Note: All Blue varieties are considered as parti-colored varieties.

Note: Blue is not and cannot be an established pure color. It is a result of blending Black and White Splash and occurs in a definite Mendelian manner. When Blues are mated together, the off spring will occur approximately in the proportion of one White splash, to two blue to one black.

SOURCES

• The American standard of perfection, illustrated. A complete description of recognized varieties of fowls, as revised by [the Association at its 62d-67th annual meetings, 1937-42.] Public Domain accessed from: https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/009169004