BREEDING FOR THE LONGTAILS

I would like to offer information that I have collected on the breeding of the regularly molting longtails (non Onagadori) on this page and illustrate how one could work with one's birds. (The illustrations below are rather exaggerated but will serve this explanation. They are derived from the artwork commissioned by the German Phoenix and Onagadori Society from the famous poultry illustrator Jan van der Haan. The unretouched illustrations can be viewed under the link below -Phoenix -GERMAN- . Under the links below I will show, however, the two different tastes in form - the UK, East German and the West German, Swiss German)

It is important to understand that the tail feathers of the longtails need a long season of growth and that many birds hatched out in the winter are usually not finished until the spring. To be able to evaluate one's birds' genetic makeup, one must wait until the feathers are dry, i.e. no longer in blood feathers. Depending on the ancestry of your particular breed (Phoenix of resent Onagadori descent, Phoenix of distant Onagadori descent, and from which lines your Minohiki, Shokoku, Totenko or Ohiki) one may have birds that moult once a year, every two years or even every three years. This type of non-moulting phenomenon is no longer desirable in non-Onagadori birds in mainland Europe. Please see ONAGADORI-PHOENIX Debate for further information. I usually make selections for the roosters around January through February. The hens can be evaluated much sooner, as their feather growth is usually terminated at six months of age. It is also important to know that in most Longtails breeds two to four year old roosters will have much more luxuriant feather growth than year-olds. In this case, I have often used only two to five year old roosters because I could be more certain of their type of feathering. Types of feathering: all references that I have read in English, Dutch and German refer to the longtailedness gene "gt" as being dominant. I have made many crosses and out-crosses with different longtails and must make many amendments to this postulate. The dominance of longtailedness is most evident in the main sickles . Coverts and saddles are much more difficult to breed into and maintain in a line and have not shown this simple dominance. I have also not heard any research results as to the mutant feathers. I know that the Minohiki, Onagadori, Ohiki, Shokoku and some East German and British Yokohama lines have varying degrees of mutant sickles. There is also a fast-feathering gene that is important for the luxurient look of the best longtails. I will try to illustrate each of these three factors involving the "tail". Please click on the particular body parts of the birds illustrated below for my notes.

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THIS FORM BELOW IS OF THE MODERN GERMAN PHOENIX: elongated & pheasant-like, with a five to six point comb that lifts off the back of the head, blue (slate) legged, long-necked and with firm feathers that reach a maxium of 90 - 100 cm in length.

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Please click on the illustration below to view further illustrations of the aspects of Breeding Longtails.

(Pass your cursor over the body of the birds below.)

 

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Please click on the illustration below to view further illustrations of the aspects of Breeding Longtails.

(Pass your cursor over the body of the birds below.)