Q for Tiffany or anyone (& pics)

[L in Ontario]

I just picked up a new pair of Gouldians last night (what can I say, I'm a sucker for birds!). They were sold as a pair of Yellows but when I got home and told my daughter, she said no way the male is yellow. Luckily the pricing was what drew my attention to this pair of 2008 closed banded Goulds.

He is visually yellow but genetically he is a dilute SFY. His head is a real grey colour (not white) and his breast is purple. The hen is BH,WB,YB so she appears as a white head.

My Q for Tiffany is: As he is SO dilute as to appear yellow - do you think he will pass this on to any dilute babies? Or will they appear as a pale green?

[nixity]

My Q for Tiffany is: As he is SO dilute as to appear yellow - do you think he will pass this on to any dilute babies? Or will they appear as a pale green?

It's possible - but the way a dilute visually expresses varies from bird to bird, and sometimes from molt to molt

There are definitely some that are more lemon-lime whereas others are more lime green. It would be interesting to see if the amount of suppression is genetic (meaning his sons will show more yellow, too).
These are the type of dilutes I really love. I'd be more inclined to keep back the lighter dilutes for myself if this is the case.

[L in Ontario]

Here's a couple of pics of him and her (Night and Day) along with a couple of close-ups of his head/face.

[dfcauley]

Oh Liz... they are beautiful!! Congratulations on MORE birds!

[nixity]

Very nice!! And she is also a PERFECT example of a BH YTB hen and the two of them side by side illustrate the stark difference between a yellow tipped and red tipped beak.

[L in Ontario]

Thanks Donna! You can see why I snapped them up at a decent price and just about 2 years old... perfect for breeding.

[L in Ontario]

Thank you Tiffany. My daughter thought the pics showed a bit of nasal discharge from the male; though I don't see any (I wear glasses). Hence the close ups of the male's head/face/beak. Do you see anything that would suggest I put them on antibiotics for 5 days?

[debbie276]

Is it just my monitor or does he look like a beautiful Lilac Breast to anyone else?? And if he is a Lilac Breast, isn't that why he is visually Yellow?
Maybe it's time for a new monitor

[lovemyfinch]

He is georgeous Liz. My monitor shows a purple breast, not lilac. Howver I can also see some green in his back which makes it apparent that he is a dilute.

Quick Q...what is the difference between a RTB and a YTB, besides the colour of course...is there a reason for this.

[nixity]

Quick Q...what is the difference between a RTB and a YTB, besides the colour of course...is there a reason for this.

Yellow tipped indicates the bird is genetically orange head..

Red tipped just means the bird is carrying (at least) one red head gene. A red/orange bird will still have a red tipped beak - always; but an orange head bird will NEVER have a red tipped beak.

The process of being orange head eliminates the birds' ability to produce the carotene associated with the red color.
And this goes for the color we see expressed through the beak tip, as well.

Because she is not carrying a red head gene (which is still required to actually produce the orange color in the feathers - the pigments follow similar metabolic pathways), but a black head one, she can not visually produce the orange color in the feathers - but it still shows through in the beak, telling us that she is genetically an Orange head, but can't express it due to possessing the sex linked BH gene instead of red.

Confusing enough?

[nixity]

I was wondering about the lilac as well - it's sometimes hard to tell on camera.. it looks dark in some shots, not as much so in others.

He does seem very yellow - but the breast looks so dark in some of the shots it's hard to really say if it's lilac for sure.

[debbie276]

Ok, so it might not be my monitor then. He looks like my LB ... here's his picture during a molt.

[nixity]

It could certainly be a dark lilac, but to me he kind of reminds me of Tang - who technically COULD be Lilac, but I feel like perhaps he is just a lighter "purple"

Especially when compared to Iggy, who is a true Lilac.


These are both DF Yellow males, though.

Misty's Rooster that she got from me is a LB SF Yellow; I don't think I have pictures of him anymore after I started cleaning off my hard drive.

Liz - could you get photos that clearly show the back of the bird? Now I am curious

[debbie276]

Beautiful birds Tiffany!
I love the deep "richness" of the color in a lilac breast male. The hens don't impress me at all, more like a rose color.

[nixity]

Beautiful birds Tiffany!
I love the deep "richness" of the color in a lilac breast male. The hens don't impress me at all, more like a rose color.

Sometimes they are nice, but I think it has to do with the overall picture

I'm fairly certain based on the color and background of this bird (mom is Purple/Lilac, father is WB) that she is LB.. but I haven't seen any offspring fully color out to verify yet. I'm looking/HOPING for some LB males.