Question: I have two questions to do with the rich dark
yellow we seek in "finishing off" yellow variety birds, i.e., Danish
Pieds, Dominant Pieds, Lacewings and Lutinos which is called "buttercupping"of
their body colour.
a] Will dark factor birds i.e., Dark Greens, Olives Cobalts and Mauves help
in this matter to produce the buttercupping?
b] Will the violet factor contribute also to the above mentioned ?
Answer:
Thanks for the question, Gary. The various Yellow varieties (non-Lutinos), used
to be very popular in the UK several decades ago, but Lutinos are now the usual
yellow variety bred for the all-yellow phenotype. There is an excellent book
called Exhibition Budgerigars, written many years ago by Dr M. D. S. Armour.
The writer has a great liking for the Yellow varieties and throughout the book
he relates his work with Yellows. The classic text The Cult of The Budgerigar
by W. Watmough, also has a fair amount to say on the subject. If you can get
hold of a copy of both books, they are well worth a read.
According to the Budgerigar Society (UK) Colour Standards. There are several
varieties of budgerigar which should have the phenotypic appearance of buttercup
yellow:
It is, therefore, obvious that the buttercup yellow phenotype can be achieved by the effect of several different alleles (genes) which suppress the production of melanin pigment. However, only the Ino gene totally suppresses melanin production, whereas the other yellow varieties show varying degrees of slight melanin production in the wing markings, or some form of green suffusion, and hence most breeders have chosen to breed Lutinos for this reason.
The buttercup shade of yellow is reputedly best seen in a yellow bird which
does not possess the Dark gene, and this is achieved by constant selection of
the birds which exhibit the least markings or suffusion and by inter-breeding
such birds, Yellow to Yellow, within each of the specific varieties. The colour
of yellow can of course be modified by the Dark or Violet genes acting individually
or together, but as to the visual result, one can only report for each bird
with personal visual examination. I doubt if the Violet gene will produce a
beneficial colour modification to a Yellow bird, since in Greens, it tends to
dull the colour rather than darken it. The Dark gene produces its effect by
reducing the thickness of the Cloudy Zone in the feather, and has no effect
upon melanin production, and will deepen the yellow colour, but whether the
yellow is buttercup yellow, one can only determine by personal visual examination.
The Dark gene will produce a deeper yellow colour in all the Yellow varieties,
which may or may not approximate to a buttercup colour: You can only assess
each individual by visual inspection. If you are seriously interested in the
Yellows, then you would be wise to experiment with the introduction of the Dark
gene into your stud of Yellows.
Since there are so many different varieties of Yellow, it would be tedious for
me to examine all possibilities here. If you need help in working out a breeding
programme to establish the Dark gene in your Yellows, then please let me know
which variety of Yellow you wish to specialize. Better still, go and look at
a stud which produces the best buttercup yellow coloured birds and find out
which variety of Yellow it is and learn from the breeder.
Original text Copyright © 1998, Dr John Pilkington
Editors' note: I regret that Dr Pilkington is unable to answer any further
questions.
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