Mutation Help!
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They are all gorgeous!
The first baby is a grey opaline yellowface I (too early to tell by looking but the mother looks to be yellowface I so the chick likely is also). I’m surprised because I wouldn’t have originally thought the father was grey green, he looks olive to me, but the grey color-adding factor is dominant so one of the parents must have it and it’s not the female. What color are the father’s cheek patches?
The other two babies are gorgeous as well, both opaline, spangle, and greywing, though the darker one appears also to be pied (?). The one on the left is sky blue, the other one appears to be cobalt although it’s hard to tell! If you had additional photos of them showing the front, etc. in natural light it would be helpful!
The first baby is a grey opaline yellowface I (too early to tell by looking but the mother looks to be yellowface I so the chick likely is also). I’m surprised because I wouldn’t have originally thought the father was grey green, he looks olive to me, but the grey color-adding factor is dominant so one of the parents must have it and it’s not the female. What color are the father’s cheek patches?
The other two babies are gorgeous as well, both opaline, spangle, and greywing, though the darker one appears also to be pied (?). The one on the left is sky blue, the other one appears to be cobalt although it’s hard to tell! If you had additional photos of them showing the front, etc. in natural light it would be helpful!
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I had the same thought process, @StarlingWings. And I'm wondering if that first chick is mauve instead of grey, which would addresses his father's olive color rather than grey green. The chick's cheek patches could go either way. ...for mauve or grey. If my monitor is not playing tricks on me, I also see a bluish cast to the chick's coloring.
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Actually the grey/mauve might be from the father because these are the father's parents (the photo isn't great and he's not mine so I don't have many photos, but he's a grey/mauve (?) pied):
And about babies #2 and #3, the skyblue one seems definitely spangle, but is it possible for a spangle not to have marks on the wings? Because that one has the typical spangle marks on the wings, but the other one has all white wings with no dark marks whatsoever
I'll try to get more pictures of them in natural light to show you!
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Another pictures of baby #3, taken at the time I took those videos:
But tomorrow I can take them out of the nest for some more pictures!
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On my monitor the cheek patches looked really blue (rather than violet) although I was wondering about the mauve as well; the grandfather is definitely mauve so I think that sorts that out - the baby must be mauve! By the way, she’s a girl, because opaline is sex-linked
As for the spangle markings, I’m now doubting that the sky blue chick is even greywing because in the new photos he just appears spangle opaline, and that’s why his body colour is darker than his sibling. The other chick (#3) is cobalt, sf dominant pied, greywing, opaline, spangle, which is why his markings are so fuzzy!
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Thanks a bunch guys!On my monitor the cheek patches looked really blue (rather than violet) although I was wondering about the mauve as well; the grandfather is definitely mauve so I think that sorts that out - the baby must be mauve! By the way, she’s a girl, because opaline is sex-linked
As for the spangle markings, I’m now doubting that the sky blue chick is even greywing because in the new photos he just appears spangle opaline, and that’s why his body colour is darker than his sibling. The other chick (#3) is cobalt, sf dominant pied, greywing, opaline, spangle, which is why his markings are so fuzzy!
Baby #1 has a green opaline sibling, so it's safe to assume it's also a girl?
Also!
Ooh, so many mutations together for baby #3! What a mix I've got here
I was hoping I'd get a clearwing from the babies #2 and #3 father, because I actually don't know if he's spangle, clearwing or greywing for sure.
Can I take this opportunity to ask you the father's mutation as well?
The following pictures were from a few months ago when he had a beak problem (and was moulting!) and I took lots of pictures to see the evolution, he's all better now. It's just to show you more pictures of him!
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Hope I'm not asking too much...
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Yes, if there's an opaline sibling to the first chick, she is indeed a she. When neither parent is a visible opaline, but there are opaline chicks, that means the father is split to opaline, that is, he carries the recessive opaline gene. Because it is a sex-linked trait, hens cannot carry the gene. They either are opaline or not. In a mating such as yours of normal/split opaline male to normal female, the resulting chicks will be either normal males, normal/split opaline males or opaline females. Thus the only visual opalines are all females.
As far as clearwing, of the three dilution mutations--clearwing, greywing and dilute, often confused with each other--clearwing alone does not cause substantially diluted body color. The other two do....50% dilution of body color. Also, clearwings have violet cheeks patches while the other two have light colored patches. Based on your photos, one of the chicks appears to be pastel with diluted body color, the cobalt, so not clearwing. And I agree with
@StarlingWings that the sky blue is an opaline spangle. Opaline only dilutes body color by 15% or so. So that one's not clearwing either.
The father looks like a yellowfaced sky blue dilute spangle to me. If that's body color on the wings, add opaline to the mix.
As far as clearwing, of the three dilution mutations--clearwing, greywing and dilute, often confused with each other--clearwing alone does not cause substantially diluted body color. The other two do....50% dilution of body color. Also, clearwings have violet cheeks patches while the other two have light colored patches. Based on your photos, one of the chicks appears to be pastel with diluted body color, the cobalt, so not clearwing. And I agree with
@StarlingWings that the sky blue is an opaline spangle. Opaline only dilutes body color by 15% or so. So that one's not clearwing either.
The father looks like a yellowfaced sky blue dilute spangle to me. If that's body color on the wings, add opaline to the mix.
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It's a collection of feathered cotton candy!
😁
😁
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Well put!
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Well said, @wmcburke.
To me, especially going by the last photo, there’s definitely body color in the wings so spangle opaline for sure; thoughts on sky blue YF II spangle greywing opaline? He looks a bit dark for dilute and it’s hard to see cheek patches when the spangle is washing them out so much… and especially considering the 15-20% opaline dilution?
To me, especially going by the last photo, there’s definitely body color in the wings so spangle opaline for sure; thoughts on sky blue YF II spangle greywing opaline? He looks a bit dark for dilute and it’s hard to see cheek patches when the spangle is washing them out so much… and especially considering the 15-20% opaline dilution?
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I'm on the fence about greywing vs dilute but agree with everything else. As you know, there are many 'tweeners' when it comes to these two mutations--birds that are too darkly patterned for dilute but not as darkly patterned as a greywing ideally should be. Without the aid of cheek patches it makes for a puzzlement. But, the cobalt chick is probably a greywing and the odds say, then, that dad is as well.
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