06/04/2026
Bantam Silkie Ducks.
This article was posted in a genetics group I'm in and is really interesting.
As a Holderread ju**ie any new information about he or Darrel Sheraw totally grabs my attention.
As posted by Author Ross Rollman/Duck Color Genetics
My duck is these photos is a dusky.
Our smooth silkies include black variations, a mallard variation/snowy, and a wooly/fuzzy Blue Butterscotch out of Valley Poultry
๐ฆ
Silkiness (h) in poultry has, according to Crawford (Poultry Breeding and Genetics, pp. 178 - 179), been known for centuries (Marco Polo, 1298 - 1299 and Aldrovandi, 1600). The silkie feather trait is a feature characteristic of the Silkie breed in chickens.
Moreover, Crawford (p. 179) said;
'๐๐๐ ๐จ๐๐ก๐ ๐ฎ ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐๐ฉ ๐ง๐๐๐๐๐๐ก๐ก๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ง๐ช๐๐ฉ๐ช๐ง๐ ๐ค๐ ๐๐ก๐ก ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ง๐จ. ๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ง๐๐ก, ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ง ๐จ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐จ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ค๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ช๐ฃ๐ช๐จ๐ช๐๐ก๐ก๐ฎ ๐ก๐ค๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ช๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐ก๐ฎ ๐๐๐๐ช๐ง๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐จ. ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ช๐ก๐๐จ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ก๐ค๐ฃ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐, ๐๐ง๐ง๐๐๐ช๐ก๐๐ง๐ก๐ฎ ๐๐ง๐ง๐๐ฃ๐๐๐, ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ก๐๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ค๐ฉ๐ ๐๐๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ก ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฅ๐ง๐ค๐ญ๐๐ข๐๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐๐๐ก๐จ. ๐๐๐ช๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ง๐จ ๐๐ค ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐๐๐ซ๐ ๐ ๐๐ก๐๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ช๐ก๐๐จ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐๐๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐ค๐๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ง. ๐ผ๐ก๐ก ๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐จ ๐ง๐๐จ๐ช๐ก๐ฉ๐จ ๐๐ฃ ๐ ๐จ๐๐ก๐ ๐ฎ ๐ค๐ง ๐ฌ๐ค๐ค๐ก๐ก๐ฎ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐๐. ๐๐๐ ๐ง๐๐๐ฉ๐ง๐๐๐๐จ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ค๐ง๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ง๐๐ข๐๐๐๐จ'.
In chickens at least, silkiness has been studied by many (Crawford, p. 179) with the causative factor identified as an autosomal recessive. It was given the gene symbol 'h' by Dunn and Jull in 1927. The symbol h stands for 'hookless', thus identifying the feathers lack of barbicels (hooks).
In mallard derived ducks, Holderread (2011, p. 42) says that the Silkie breed of bantam Duck in North America owes its existence to the renowned breeder, Darrel Sheraw, who bred them unexpectantly from his normal feathered White and Snowy Mallards in the 1980s. Mr. Sheraw established a breeding flock of these unusually feathered ducks and called them Silkies.
For Australia, the Silkie Mallard derived duck was unheard of as far as I am aware (perhaps a breeder in Victoria had them earlier?). However, more recently an Australian Call Duck breeder has had a mutation arise in her birds that also results in silkie feathered progeny. This breeder has had her birds tested for the mutation involved, and from what I understand, its mode of inheritance is the same as that found for silkie feathering in the North American Silkie Bantam mallard derived duck, and in chickens.
For those interested in the Silkie Bantam breed in Australia, the following link provides additional information.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564367918995&mibextid=wwXIfr&rdid=p7HnZVFaDeaAdsEI&share_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fshare%2F18Sdedo4sF%2F%3Fmibextid%3DwwXIfr #
Duck N' Cluck, Jamie McCarver Ellis.
