Inheritance of the lace‐tailed laced plumage pattern of the sebright bantam

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
1. An investigation was conducted firstly among progeny from a cross between Blue Andalusian and Silver‐spangled Hamburgh bantams, and secondly between crosses of selected progeny of this mating with a Silver Sebright bantam in an effort to determine the genotype of the lace‐tailed laced plumage phenotype of the latter. 2. The genotype of the black‐laced blue and the spangled plumage phenotypes of the Andalusian and the Silver‐spangled Hamburgh had, respectively, been shown to depend on homozygosity of E, Co, db+, Ml and Pg, and of co+, Db, Ml and Pg together with a black down allele at the E‐locus presumed to be E, but also hypothesised to be ER. The genes E and ER are the extended black and birchen‐like allele at the E‐locus whilst Co, Db, Ml and Pg are, respectively, the eumelanin restrictors, Columbian and dark‐brown Columbian, the eumelanin extension melanotic and the pattern gene. The Sebright had been hypothesised to possess the E allele at the E‐locus, and to be homozy‐gous Co, Ml and Pg, a combination shown to be responsible for the black‐tailed laced phenotype of the Wyandotte. 3. Segregation in the F2 generation varied from that expected if both parental genotypes were E/E, but gave close agreement if the Silver‐spangled Hamburgh was ER/ER. 4. A lace‐tailed laced segregant in the F2 generation of the first mating, presumed to be homozygous ER, Co, Db, Ml and Pg was mated to a Sebright. The F1 generation failed to segregate at the 5 loci, thus suggesting the genotype of the lace‐tailed laced phenotype of the Sebright to be homozygous ER, Co, Db, Ml and Pg. Segregation in the F2 generation of a mating of the female F1 with a Silver‐spangled Hamburgh male confirmed the genotype of the lace‐tailed lacing of the Sebright bantam, and demonstrated that of the Silver‐spangled Hamburgh to be homozygous ER, co+, Db, Ml and Pg‐.