[gateshead1979]

Hello everyone, I'm totally new to this place and registered in the hope you may be able to help me with becoming the best budgie mom I can be. I have Walter, a six months old Australian pied, who was sold to me by the breeder as a male. Since last week I have little Winston under my wing, too. He is a blue-grey budgie who's also approximately six months old. He's a rescue so nobody seems to know. I think he's a girl though? And after reading into gendering budgies I am now all confused about Walter as well! To but a long story short please could you help me gender these two tinkers? Thank you so much!

Walter:

Winston:

I can try for some better photos if necessary.

 

[Cody]

They are both beautiful, the ceres are so pale they both look like females to me but I will defer to StarlingWings judgement, who is expert at this, she should be online later and will have a look.

 

[StarlingWings]

Hi there and welcome to the forums!

Your babies are gorgeous! I have to admit, this is a tricky case. If they were older, I'd be tempted to say male almost but the paleness around the nares and their ages makes it seem like they will end up being female. I would definitely not expect that particular color around the nares for males in any case, but it may be the lighting making it look lighter than it is.

Could you post more photos taken in natural light, and, (while usually not recommended for gender identification since the flash washes out the cere) photos taken with the flash? I can see the opacity (NOT color) of the cere better with flash.

Both are so cute and it's funny that they both have equally difficult ceres!

Meanwhile, you've come to a great place to learn even more about the best of budgie care practices. If you have any questions after reading through the forums, please be sure to ask as we'd love to help!

We hope to see you around! 👋

 

[gateshead1979]

Good morning and thank you very much for your responses! As requested, here are some photos taken with flash and in natural light. I do hope I haven't spammed the thread now with too many photos haha. Thank you again for your help, it's much appreciated!

Walter with Flash:

Walter Natural Light:

Winston Flash:

Winston Natural Light:

 

[FaeryBee]

Hi, Welcome to Talk Budgies!

The purpose of this forum is to promote the BEST PRACTICES in the care of budgies for their optimal Health and Well-Being
Locating an Avian Veterinarian

Your budgies are beautiful! I'm leaving the determination on their gender to @StarlingWings as she is our expert!

If you have mixed genders, it is very important to do everything necessary to prevent breeding.
Budgies are much healthier and happier when they are never bred.
A Heartfelt Plea to All Members
Tips For Discouraging Breeding
Before You Ever Consider Breeding Your Budgies
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Additionally, please be sure to read the thread "Posting on the Forums" which is linked below.

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Essentials to a Great Cage
Dangers to Pet Birds
Resource Directory

 

[gateshead1979]

Thank you, FaeryBee, for the welcome and links. I'm patiently waiting for her to get back to me 😁

 

[StarlingWings]

Ah..

Sorry about the wait LOL

To be honest-- I saw these pics right when you posted them and kept having to go back and look at them several times so my reply is delayed a bit.

These two have definitely tricky ceres. Winston appears to be female (I personally love the name Winnie for her!) based on not only the color of the cere from the photos you sent, but also the shine and the shape of the cere. By similar criteria, Walter appears to be male... however, it is very unusual for a male his age to show any brown around his nares (in older male budgies, this can sometimes happen due to a hormonal imbalance or tumor). Therefore I do not believe he is male. The thing with him is that the blue on the edges of his cere is the correct color for a male budgie, which is what is confusing.

Both these little ones do not have their irises yet and have barely had their first moult, by the looks of it. It would be great to see more updated photos in a couple months!

So, I guess my answer is... Winston is female, and Walter very well could be female but can't be 100% determined at this point 😅 Ceres this tricky are rare, but every budgie is different, so all you have to do is wait a few more weeks and it'll be much more obvious.

 

[gateshead1979]

Good morning, and thank you for your concise explanation. It's a bit of a shame that it's not quite certain yet what gender Walter is. I guess - as you say - it will become more obvious a few months down the line. It does not matter to me if they're male/female, but it'd be great to know just so I can do my best to avoid any kind of shenanigans, such as eggs and babies. I really don't want to breed them. There are too many breeders out there already, who don't know what they're doing . I may take another few photos in a few weeks and send them again, if you don't mind? And thank you again for taking your time, it's much appreciated!

 

[StarlingWings]

Sounds great, I’d be happy to see any photos you send later on! Additionally I must say it’s great to hear that you’re so conscious of the risks of breeding and have every intention of preventing it. Your little ones will surely have a wonderful time with you and I look forward to hearing more! 🐣

 

[gateshead1979]

Hello again! The plot thickens on little Walter. His Ceres seems to become darker and browner. I think he may well be a she. I will keep an eye on it and you posted.

Best!

 

[FaeryBee]

That seems like an awfully dark blue to be turning brown.

Out of curiosity, has Walter had a well-birdie check up with an Avian Veterinarian?

 

[gateshead1979]

Hi there, yes he did ☺. He had a general check up once he gotten used to his new home and us, at the end of September. The vet said he's male and in top form and healthy. That said I now believe Walter to be a girl. Why do you ask ?

 

[FaeryBee]

You may be right and Walter may be a female -- again, we'll leave that determination to @StarlingWings.

I asked because the cere looks like such a dark blue in that picture, my (hopefully unfounded) concern is that if Walter is a male and the cere is turning brown there may be a hormonal problem.
I'm really not trying to alarm you.

 

[gateshead1979]

He is a bit of a mystery really 😂 the white nostrils say female, the slight brown colouring says female, but the lowest part of his nose is indeed very dark blue. He may be in the stage where his ceres is not fully dark blue yet. It's all a bit strange. He's six months old now so maybe we just have to wait a few months longer.

 

[FaeryBee]

Yes, Walter is definitely a mystery budgie and a very handsome (beautiful) one at that!

 

[StarlingWings]

He's so handsome! I still really think he is male, I do agree the brown is a bit concerning/odd... looking forward to updates!