Smoky black

Smoky black or black carrying cream is a coat color of horses which has the same phenotype as black. Smoky black is produced by the action of a heterozygous (single copy) cream gene on an underlying black coat color. Therefore, smoky black is a member of the cream family of coat color dilutions, and found in horse populations that have other cream-based colors such as palomino, buckskin, perlino, cremello and smoky cream. All smoky blacks must have at least one parent with the cream gene, and a smoky black can only be verified through DNA testing or parentage. Smoky black has been mistaken for faded black, dark bay or brown, grullo or even liver chestnut.

A single copy of the cream gene can have a subtle effect on the colour of an otherwise black horse. However, this cannot be used to positively identify an individual horse as black or smoky black, as too much variation comes from other sources. An individual black horse may well be a lighter shade than an individual smoky black horse, even if the reverse is more common. Other factors that can influence the shade of black and smoky black horses include sun fading and nutrition.

Two copies of the cream gene on a black base coat produce a smoky cream, a cream-colored horse which cannot be visually distinguished from a perlino or cremello, but can be identified through DNA testing.

Smoky black horses can range from a pure black color to a lighter color resembling bay. The palest can be mistaken for dull bays or liver chestnuts, especially if exposed to the elements. Bleaching due to the elements means that the legs retain their color better, and can take on an appearance of having dark points like a bay horse.

While it superficially resembles other coat colors, experienced horse persons often detect something "off" about the coat of an adult smoky black. The darkest shades among smoky blacks are almost indistinguishable from true black but for a slightly burnished look often chalked up to sun bleaching. The palest can be mistaken for dull bays or liver chestnuts, especially if exposed to the elements. Smoky black coats tend to react strongly to sun and sweat, and many smoky blacks turn to a brown color with particularly reddish tips of the manes and tails. Bleaching due to the elements means that the legs retain their color better, and can take on an appearance of having dark points like a bay horse. Smoky blacks, however, will lack rich red tones in the coat, instead favoring brown and orange tones.

Smoky black horses, like other horses with a single copy of cream, often have slightly lighter eyes and skin than non-cream horses. Their eye color may be amber even at adulthood. However, it is sometimes difficult to distinguish an amber-brown eye from an ordinary dark brown eye unless there are other horses available for direct comparison.

Like black foals, smoky black foals are typically quite silvery, and may be mistaken for grullos, especially when born with primitive markings. Smoky black foals are sometimes born with reddish tufts of hair in their ears, again like black foals.

There is no reliable way to be certain that a horse is smoky black through purely visual identification, because it can so closely resemble black or bay.