Dave_McMinn

I'll do colour JimmyBanks picture 1 - Yellow Green picture 2 - Yellow Yellow

Not upset, nor childish. Much like the great Jerry Seinfeld, this is called observational humour. Sorry if it is not style.

Unless both birds are lacewing, or both birds are greywing, or both birds are dilute, then you will not get these characteristics to appear. What other breeding options do you have available? Show breeders say you should not mix greywing with anything cinnamon as it muddy's up the gene pool. No other options? If you did breed these two, you will simply get normals, but I think you should consider other options. You say you have 50+ birds. Must be other options

I cannot see if it has an iris ring or not, but I am going to say Recessive pied

You are right RIPbudgies, that building is not part of the WACA. Look closely everyone... please note that picture is taken form the car. You will see other objects in the picture. The cars in front are not part of the WACA, nor is the bush, nor is the orange witches hat/cone. I was driving nearby and saw the light towers. I was making the point that the WACA was over there. Sorry if that posed confusion to others.

there were people lined up ready to pay money to get on the ferris wheel today Jimmy, so it seems that there are many who disagree with your take on ferris wheels

Apply for it. I don't know what Brisbane is like, but Sydney is in a rental crisis. Places get snapped up very quickly. In saying that, when my place was being rented out, the real estate agent did not take the first-comer. This was to enable me to get the best tennant. I would contact that real estate agent and sell yourself well. Let them know that you would be a good tennant, tell them why, tell them your limitations, and go from there. Nothign ventured nothing gained.

JimmyBanks - yes, I as being sarcastic. No, bags'ing does not work. It does not count. It is not a real or even a reliable method. I am sorry my sarcasm was so strong. Yes, you are right. There are no budgies coming from England to Australia. Shannon - I agree with you, I would like any of those birds in my flock as well.

it is not going to turn from a grey green to a green. You are not confused Sailorwolf, I think that Jwancia and JimmyBanks are.

sure you can. You can breed any colour to any other colour. What you get out of that, well, that is another question, however it is not a question you asked.

I took a few pics today on my journey along the coastline. Here are some pics. Beach shots Marina shots Fremantle station The WACA Bell Tower in Perth New Ferris Wheel Cruised around and saw a few things I did not take photos of. It was nice to see, nice in the car in the air conditioning. I also went to the Chocolate factory on West Swan Rd. Very yummy. Went to a few galleries and got some nice pics and some good ideas. Nice day, saw a few things. Could do this all again and see all new things. Very enjoyable. I was able to get out JB as Kaz is still yet to make a safety door on my aviary home .

The yellow appearance is most likely due to the reflection of the yellow feathers on the white iris ring.

Here are some pics Morgana - Karen and Ken's Hearse that was our ride for the evening Some other cars that belong to members of the Cadillac Club and the Buick Club

Bags'ing birds has always been the way to go Jimmy. I have made a special effort to call the houses of Cec Gearing, Gary Armstrong, Gerald Binks, the Al-Nassers, Daz, Hans, Kaz, and a few others to bags all their newborns. :anim_19: :anim_19:

Well done Hills. I read your post about what happened and all I could think was "this is what the forum should be for - to teach people how to respond when something goes wrong." Excellent work. Hopefully people will learn what they should do initially, and then what they should so if things go wrong.

Some birds have grey iris rings, some have white, some have none. It is not a big issue unless you are planning on breeding the bird now, which you are not. Usually a white iris ring is the indicator being old enough to breed, of course coupled with the correct colour and condition of the cere, and condition generally of feathers.

Great birds Liv. Some nice boofy heads. Kaz and I were just discussing how difficult it can be to capture a good photo.

Branch 1 Kids Cubby house 0 Any branches from gum trees are good. Those younger the branches the more they enjoy them

I would put the pied boy with him. Of course, we are assuming here that it is after quarantine, that they are all enough, that they are in breeding conditions. Wow, a lot to think about.

Martyr? I think not. You know the funny thing...as Kaz was typing this up she was asking me if she had spelt martyr correctly. I did not ask the context.Perhaps I should have. If I had known, I would told her thaat you spell martyr like this GENIUS :angel1: :anim_19: :yuck: :yes: :rofl: :bow: :star:

welcome to the forum. It is always amazing to have members from outside Australia.

Last year Kaz contacted Mr Gerald Binks, a renown budgerigar breeder and author, seeking to gain some further insight on a series of a topics. He was kind enough to handwrite responses to some questions, in quite extensive depth. I have taken these handwritten letters and typed them up here for everyone to read and learn from. Mr Binks provides a great deal of useful information as well as some thought provoking questions. On behalf of everyone here, I would like to express our gratitude to Mr Gerald Binks, not only for the information he provides but also for the time he has put into providing this information. Also a big thank you to Kaz, who sourced this information from an expert in the field. There are multiple articles. Please read and offer comment. (If there are grammatical errors or typing errors, they are my fault, and they occurred in the digitising process, and for this I offer my apologies) A Serious Matter Affecting us All by Gerald S. Binks “There are times”, as Margery Kirkly-Mason, the great lutino breeder, once said to me ,”when I think I know nothing about budgerigars”. Very profound words from one of our former great fanciers. This came to mind the other day when I happened to glance at the floor of one of my flights. I could see an area where my birds get their carrot and eggfood mixture had what appear to be a pale reddish hue. I’d see it before, but took it to be spillage from the mixture, but this time I woke up to the fact that it was something else. I took a spoon and scraped some up and placed it on the bench. A few moments later I put a X5 eyepiece to it and I was staggered to see the mass moving with minute fodder mite. I explored further in difficult areas of this flights floor which hadn’t been cleaned out for over four weeks, instead of the usual two. I came across that brownish powder which adheres to the flight floors. I examined that and the results were identical. All in all, the whole one inch coating of sterilised sawdust, carrot and egg food spillage scattered grain and grit, was alive! I was both staggered and horrified, but then I got to thinking my aviary was no different to other aviaries, and I was perhaps among those who are more fastidious than others. The grey matter then turned to problems which occur in aviaries these days, as well as former times. One problem we all see is the bird which is wet around the face, clean back end and regurgitating. If not attended to, the bird gets enteritis and you have a good chance of losing it. I surmised that there a very good chance of these birds ingesting seeds scattered on the floor which were coated with fodder mite. What would be the effect on them, especially if large numbers were consumed unwillingly? Almost certainly the birds’ gut system would be affected quickly and I guess the PH would be altered as a result of consuming acidified bugs. If that is the case, and I think I’m right, then this would account for the sickness I’ve described. Furthermore I’ve noticed this wetness with birds usually starts in May and diminishes in September/October in the Northern Hemisphere. May to September are the warm months when conditions are right for all bugs to proliferate and produce in big numbers. I think I may have hit on a matter which affects the whole fancy. On the other hand, I may be totally wrong so I’m open to other fanciers’ ideas on the subject. There is no doubt in my mind all aviaries have these pale brown masses on aviary floors, cage floors, under the loose seed and in the bottom of dishes that aren’t cleaned out regularly. Purely by accident I put a lens on mine, but I doubt if many have done the same. I use that excellent product MONOPROP in all my sed bins, so that kills off any microfungi and anything which can be described as live. Once fed however, the fodder mites seem to appear and start breaking down food by feeding on any debris around, especially where there is any dampness present which I will guess accelerates reproduction. I, of course, cleared the flights immediately, noting nothing in the other flights that has been cleaned 10 days before! I sprayed all the floors with an anti-mite spray before putting in fresh sterilised sawdust. I would think that a coating of duramitex on all floors, perhaps bi-annually, would help enormously, but this won’t keep in dishes and one has to be clean there, if you wish to avoid problems. I have another observation to make. I would warn all those who use any of the proprietry egg food mixtures which are sold in dry plastic packs to be wary. When it is open and air admitted, it too can be very quickly disintegrated by fodder mites. I’ve complained to one company and sent a bag back. They said they couldn’t see anything, but I know mites were present in big numbers. I felt, had they admitted there was a problem, their business could be in trouble, and all they was to send me a new bag. I believe such products are fine if you use them up very quickly, but large bags, once opened and even if put in airtight containers after opening, do definitely break down. Then members of the fancy you could perhaps be feeding contaminated soft food to your adults and chicks! It this ONE reason why chicks die for no account? I can’t be sure, but it is important we all think about it. In conclusion may I suggest we all fanciers get hold of a X5 or X6 eyepiece. You can get them from any opticians for a few pounds. Even if you don’t see any mites, they are still useful for looking at the closed ring number. Lastly when you get your eyepiece – keep your eye open and take samples now and then around the aviary and in all the area which budgerigars can get their beaks to.

Last year Kaz contacted Mr Gerald Binks, a renown budgerigar breeder and author, seeking to gain some further insight on a series of a topics. He was kind enough to handwrite responses to some questions, in quite extensive depth. I have taken these handwritten letters and typed them up here for everyone to read and learn from. Mr Binks provides a great deal of useful information as well as some thought provoking questions. On behalf of everyone here, I would like to express our gratitude to Mr Gerald Binks, not only for the information he provides but also for the time he has put into providing this information. Also a big thank you to Kaz, who sourced this information from an expert in the field. There are multiple articles. Please read and offer comment. (If there are grammatical errors or typing errors, they are my fault, and they occurred in the digitising process, and for this I offer my apologies) Ambition Achieved……A Tale of the 90’s When Jo Mannes visited the late Jim Moffat By Gerald Binks In 1990, Jim Moffat and myself visited the well known German breeder of superb quality budgerigars, Jo Mannes. That visit and a subsequent visit in 1994 are well recorded in Budgerigar World in earlier editions. What was actually purchased was not detailed however since both of us were not willing to publicise matters until this new blood had been absorbed into our respective studs, back in Scotland and England. It is a tale of fortunes and misfortunes such as beset all breeders who hope every new bird will breed as good as itself, or better. Ours was no exception, but more of that later. In late 1996 jo Mannes was asked to judge at The South of Scotland Budgerigar Society Open Show. Jo accepted, but requested that a long standing ambition of his was to visit the world famous stud of light greens owned by Jim moffat of M313 fame and of course his father before him. Jo felt it was a pilgrimage he had wanted to achieve soon after he himself had started to win himself in Germany, as his stud gradually increased in feather quality as well as in overall punch and power. So September saw the judging over and courtesy of the Scottish Society Jo found himself at “Sarala” in West Kilbride overlooking the sea and the Isle of Arran. Between the house and the sea lay the new Moffat aviary and several hundred light greens with a few quality sky blues and grey greens. Normals are always present in strength. It soon became obvious to Jim Moffat that Jo knew quality when he saw it. The former has bred four really outstanding light greens this year. Three are hens and one a cock. All are highly impressive and it didn’t take long before Jo had found them all. The next move was an offer to buy, but understandably Jim had to refuse. The birds were more important to him on their perches than just a sale, so no deal was struck. Jo Mannes has a certain charisma and charm about him, or so the ladies tell me. He can be very, very persuasive and he has learnt the craft of breeding outstanding birds in a very short time by hard study, skilled purchasing from the right fanciers at the right time and with an understanding of feather ahead of his time. Such were these birds at the M313 stud, but Jim Moffat was also skilled in his own right when it comes to buying a bird or selling one. For example he has a philosophy when purchasing. “If you are indifferent about a bird you want to buy, you can usually get it at YOUR price”. Hardly surprising then, that when two such fanciers met there was no purchase agreement this time. That said it would be fair to say these four birds were the cream of the year and had the parents been more prolific, then a M313 bird would have gone back to Germany willingly, if only to reciprocate the Mannes help received in 1990 and ’94 by Jim himself. Returning to the earlier years when M313 and I went to Karlsruhe. On both occasions, 10 birds returned across the channel. Our fortunes were mixed, but the outcome eventually well worth the great problems of getting the birds into their respective studs. Air freight, customs and quarantines all combine to add to the overall cost and stress. On my first visit I bought four birds and Jim…. six. I bought the best looking ones, but older birds, while Jim had young ones or one year old birds. 1990 was a year I remember well. One of mine died in quarantine, another had a heart attack, one didn’t lay and one, which was really a bird I liked, but could beat, was re-sold to Australia at the same purchase price. In Jim’s case all six bred, and included among his was a spangle light green that in Jim’s opinion is the best outcross he has ever purchased. It bred outstanding chicks with many of the first and second generation winning and getting in the cards at The Budgerigar Society Club Show. Working on the basis of “if at first you don’t succeed” etc, I was determined to attack my personal situation of earlier disasters. Nobody could have foreseen a bird dying in quarantine and another getting a heart attack. So a second visit was planned and back came another 10 birds. This time the situation was reversed. I did extremely well, particularly with a spangle grey green cock that has bred extensively, and the quality again emerging in the second generation as Jo had forecast. Another AZ01439 cinnamon cobalt also did brilliantly producing some wonderful cinnamons and greys. Jim, this time did not fare so well, not with quite the heart stopping experiences I had, but rather, his group having been set the precedent of his wonderful Mannes spangle in 1990, which was hard to emulate. The Moffat stud has bred well in 1996. The owners enthusiasm is restored and the Mannes visit after a 200 mile trip, very well received and flattering with both fanciers enjoying their mutual interests. This is what the hobby is all about. In the last twenty years especially, the hobby has become truly international as far as judging and aviary visiting is concerned. Both areas give fanciers of all levels great pleasure, first begun as I recall by Alf Ormerod on his first visit to South Africa over 30 years ago. The Mannes visit to Moffat ensures this practice will continue.

Last year Kaz contacted Mr Gerald Binks, a renown budgerigar breeder and author, seeking to gain some further insight on a series of a topics. He was kind enough to handwrite responses to some questions, in quite extensive depth. I have taken these handwritten letters and typed them up here for everyone to read and learn from. Mr Binks provides a great deal of useful information as well as some thought provoking questions. On behalf of everyone here, I would like to express our gratitude to Mr Gerald Binks, not only for the information he provides but also for the time he has put into providing this information. Also a big thank you to Kaz, who sourced this information from an expert in the field. There are multiple articles. Please read and offer comment. (If there are grammatical errors or typing errors, they are my fault, and they occurred in the digitising process, and for this I offer my apologies) Danger in the Nest Box by Gerald S. Binks Let me start by mentioning a word of warning to fastidious fanciers who by their strict attention to doing everything right, sometimes find themselves in trouble. I had a call from such a fancier who suddenly noticed two hens in their respective handling cages, swaying on perches. Minutes later both were dead. Heart attacks? Very unlikely. Question? What had he done recently? In such cases it is nearly always an aviary management error. The cause turned out is using an anti-mite powder, containing pyrethrum, under the nest box concaves. The situation was stable but with the natural sweating of the boxes, with their occupants, it caused the product to dissolve and emit fumes of a poisonous nature. The powder used in this case contained PYRETHRUM. Once the boxes had been vacuumed etc. no further problems. BE WARNED. I was interested to read about younger people today wanting instant success and plenty of money in their pockets. This, plus a lack of patience, was perhaps the reason younger people were not entering the hobby? This I agree with, but here in the UK the hobby is not marketed. I grew up with a phrase spoken to me by my grandfather who was a good green grocer. He said to me, “If you don’t tell people you have a product, you’ll never see it”. How many young people actually know of our hobby? I was a serious young ornithologist as a boy who by sheer chance a school friend showed me his budgerigar and show cages. Had I not seen those, I would never have known about the hobby that has given me so much pleasure. Point taken? Yet another call, this time from a very kind Scottish fancier who I did not know. He was anxious to tell me of his success after five near barren years of breeding. He had extended the principle of pairing up birds on the lines of the hen in the breeding cage for 3 days with the box open before the cock is introduced. His technique was as follows: The pair having been selected, the hen was put into the breeding cage with the nest hole blocked. She is allowed to be there for 5-6 days on her own. On the 6th or 7th day at the latest, the cock is introduced. The nest box is blocked off for a further 3 days. Then open the nest box. Results? Near perfect and for the time since then, he has had to throw away fertile eggs from lesser quality pairs, every nest has had full eggs. Worth remembering for the future. One thing is certain. It does get over this “box-bound hen” problem, to a large degree. The hobby will be aware that they the exports of budgerigars to Australia has been in abeyance for some years as a result of a review of the situation since certain diseases were apparent in imported birds (not budgerigars) which could affect the indigenous population. Budgerigars were tested prior to export for salmonella and Chlamydia, some 4500 in fact with negative results. However some possesses megabacteria, but as this was already established before any UK birds arrived in the Australian bird life, it is not regarded as a problem by the Australian Authorities to precluding future imports, though they may, if the door opens again to imports, require more stringent testing procedures involving other diseases. The diseases mentioned all seem to be very rare, or present even in the past in budgerigars here in the UK. It would appear other species, including ostriches, are still the focus of veterinary attention.

Last year Kaz contacted Mr Gerald Binks, a renown budgerigar breeder and author, seeking to gain some further insight on a series of a topics. He was kind enough to hand write responses to some questions, in quite extensive depth. I have taken these handwritten letters and typed them up here for everyone to read and learn from. Mr Binks provides a great deal of useful information as well as some thought provoking questions. On behalf of everyone here, I would like to express our gratitude to Mr Gerald Binks, not only for the information he provides but also for the time he has put into providing this information. Also a big thank you to Kaz, who sourced this information from an expert in the field. There are multiple articles. Please read and offer comment. (If there are grammatical errors or typing errors, they are my fault, and they occurred in the digitising process, and for this I offer my apologies) What is the most desirable feature to breed into a top show bird and how should a breeder proceed to breed it in? by Gerald S. Binks An article was recently published on this subject. I understand that the author and a few others argue that the modern show specimen we have been trying to achieve since before I entered the hobby in 1945 should now have the feather length reduced, particularly in the head region. I also understand there is also a body of opinion which exists, perhaps in a small way, in Germany that desires a move in this direction to allow our birds better forward sight. Let me say that I am most surprised, even staggered, first at this retrograde and look by a few fanciers and secondly by the total, and I mean total, lack of evidence that our very best birds in the World have any problem in flying to exactly where they choose. I refer of course to the superb facial and width of frontal feathers that now exist with the very best quality stock. I have a stud which consists solely of three major lines. First my one Grey Green, red ring line which produced the Best Breeder in Show in 1987 at the Budgerigar Society Show (5600 entries) and in the following year Best in Show at the Budgerigar World Show (4300 entries). In addition I have a heavy influence of Jim Moffat’s Light Greens and lastly I am having a marvellous influx of Jo Mannes’ blood which is breeding really prolifically and breeding superb quality at the same time. Having said that phrase, “breeding superb quality”, what exactly do I mean by that? To me a bird in modern times has to have a massive, almost flat face with the base of the mask and top of the frontal as far apart as possible. In terms of width of face, then this has to be extremely wide caused by feather direction and length – IN THE RIGHT PLACES. I also deplore the bird with what I call the “KEYHOLE” effects, where there is a pinched appearance either side of the beak and the eyes are thus visible. God forbid we ever go back to that style of bird, just to favour an unproven idea. Show me a bird with the most desirable length of feather, and facial width as a result, that cannot fly straight, and I might just take notice. I suppose if you were deliberately mad enough to reduce the feathering in the face, the only reason for doing so would be as an effect to smarten up an ugly bird which is probably massive in size and consequently has an absence of the features which to give the smart type we all desire. I know the Mannes stud fairly well. Jo has achieved what most of us want. That is the massive head feathers superimposed on a body of a great length and shoulder which is also stylish and exhibit type. The modern show bird has to be 24cms – 25.5cms overall to be in proportion. As with all studs, it is not in all of Jo’s birds, but there are a great many nevertheless. I now have that feature established and I’m continuing to work on it to spread it across the stud. It’s not easy and a great challenge and I’m enjoying it immensely. Dare I say what other European fanciers must have thought? Yes, I suspect those who argue against feather length and a great width of face across the eyes – haven’t got it themselves! It is very very difficult to achieve it, I grant them that, but I suggest they show us their birds which cannot fly forwards in a straight line before they try to steer the hobby away from what we’ve been trying so hard to get. We now come to the question of how to breed birds with this length of feather? Like everything else with the improvement of our birds since the 1920’s, it is a question of selecting birds with that little extra “something” to improve this feature or that feature. Depth of mask is difficult to get and maintain, especially in a small stud. Spots, round spots, are the same and we are continually selecting to perhaps produce one or two birds, in every hundred, that can take us that bit further forward. We are also up against the problem of whether those birds that have these features we’ve tried so hard to get will themselves breed successfully, and whether we have the opposite sexes as pairings, to breed these features and fix them in numbers for the future. Length of feather and feather direction are but two more features we have to work on, but gradually you have to breed the birds that will be essential if you are you win on the showbench.