FINCHforum

Hello Zebra Finchers.

For quite a while I've been trying to figure out what mutation my little fella is, without any answers.

@cindy , or anyone else..... any ideas???

Elana, the pictures of the whole body and head are a bit grainy so I will ask a few questions...

Is he an offspring from your birds? If so can you post mom and dad?

Do you see an extension, a line of orange from the cheek over the eye, looks sort of like an orange eyebrow?

The tail bars are showing markers for split to BB and the bars look brown in some pictures and black in the first, in person are they brown, same with the tear, breast bars, brown or black?

the head light brown or light silver? wings fawn?

See the white between the beak and the cheek, it extends up to the top of the eye, normally it stops half way, this too can be a marker for split to BB.

look for an orange extension of color from the cheek over the eye...can see it faintly in the picture but want to confirm it with you

cindy

Hi Cindy.
No, this is not one of my kids.
He's an older bird, which I picked up from a breeder quite some time ago, because I found he's coulouring interesting.

What's weird, is that it's really hard to capture his colours in a picture.

The tail bars, are visually gray/silver. Chest bars are a darker gray. Eyebrow is not orange. Wings are a fawn/gray shade. Head is off white, with silver/gray markings.

Here are a few other pictures, not sure how helpful they are.

Older pictures. ..

Whatever he is; absolutely beautiful....

Spreckles

Thank you from my senior boy.

I mean it but then i have a thing for silver gray males

Spreckles

I'll send George Cluny right over .

Possibly a lightback, maybe split to CFW...Could also be split to BB

Identifying Splits http://efinch.com/species/lbzeb.htm
Male: Lightback males that are split for CFW (carrying Lightback on one sex chromosome and CFW on the other) will be visibly lighter than males that are carrying two genes for Lightback (see below). This is true for both versions of CFW, the normal and Continental. If split for the Continental variety of CFW, the back will have a slight cream cast to it while those split for the regular CFW will be lighter and more of a 'powder' gray.

Have you bred him yet?

That is the question isn't it? Will he father beauties like himself? Then I may wish I had a zebra or two...

cindy

I have been thinking of possibly breeding him, before he gets too old (seeing as I don't know how old he really is, but looking at his leggs and feet, he's definitely not a spring chicken).

What would you pair him up with? Any thoughts?

I have several ladies still on hand...
Pictures below:

And....

if he is carrying CFW and you breed your CFW hen to him and you get CFW of both sexes then you know he is carrying CFW. If he gives you viaual lightback girls then you know he is lightback also.

By white do you mean the mutation White or all white pied?

If you breed him to your Gray and he gives you LB &/or CFW hens then you know he is LB and CFW

Breeding him to the fawn (fawns have a buff belly) is the same as breeding him to a gray. Fawn is sex linked, you need a split to fawn or visual fawn male to get viusal fawns of both sexes. If the fawn hen is not paired with a split to fawn or visual fawn all you will get are split to fawn males.

The proof of what he is and is carrying in his genes will be reflected in his offspring. If your CFW hen is carrying pied you will get split to pied young.

cindy

Thanks Cindy.

I'll have to sit down and think on it, and decide what would be the best choice. I'm thinking that it's between the CFW, or the White.....
I would like to have some kids from him, as he is a very handsome boy and I love his warm colouring.

Match maker match maker ...♡♥♡♥