Every once in a while I go around to check the pet stores to see if they have any budgies with mutations I've been wanting. Lately I've been on the lookout for a cinnamon opaline cock. Then the other day I decided I would also like to have a yf2 recessive pied hen. (I could breed one of my own, but that would take a couple of years.) So I went out looking. Of course, if you go out looking for trouble, you will find it, and I did. I came home with four birds!

 

Introducing,

 

Athos, Porthos, Aramis and d'Artagnan!

 

(you can guess what I've been reading this summer )

 

 

Athos

 

 

Porthos

 

 

Aramis

 

 

d'Artagnan

 

 

They aren't exactly cinn op cocks and yf2 rec pied hens, but they have their redeeming qualities!

 

Athos and Porthos are actually cinnamon opaline hens, not cocks. (I know I've given them boy names, but there are no girl Musketeers! ) So I still have no cinn op cock, but now I have three in hens, so I figured I can breed them and get cocks split for cinnamon and opaline, and then breed those back to the hens. So three hens is not too many.

 

And they also double as yf2 pied hens. In the store I had myself convinced that maybe, just maybe, they were recessive pieds. (Due to their blotchy wing markings.) Unfortunately, they have their wings clipped, so it makes it hard to tell what they really are. I am pretty sure they are nestmates, though, because they are so much a like.

 

Aramis was also at the same store with the girls. I got to thinking he could be their nest mate, as well, and thus could be split for cinnamon. Besides, he was so pretty, I couldn't pass him up.

 

 

That brown on his tail is from the substrate on the floor of the cage in the store. It looked like they had reptile litter in their. A lot of the birds in there had brown tails. I've bought birds from that store before, and it wears off.

 

The reason I want a cinnamon opaline cock is because my ultimate goal is to breed a sky blue cinnamon opaline greywing. So Aramis fits in with those plans, even if he isn't cinnamon or split to it. (But if he turns out to be, that could jump me light years ahead in my plan!)

 

 

Now, d'Artagnan was from a different store. But he, too, is a yf2 opaline, so he looks a lot like Athos and Porthos. (I doubt if they are related, though, since it was a different chain of stores. One that I know buys from a set commercial bird dealer.)

 

When I first saw d'Artagnan, I thought he might be cinnamon! But then I could see that his markings are just a dark grey. But his coloring is so unique, I just had to have him.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To me he looks like a pale, greenish, bluish, greyish color. I've never seen a budgie like him. I think he's either got a grey factor, or he's mauve. And I think the unusual color comes from the yellow bleeding into it, plus the greywing washing it out.

 

 

I think he's at the tail end of his first moult, because his cap is broken, he has a few pin feathers, and his clip-job is growing out. So I don't know if he will stay this color, or if it will change as he goes through a second moult. I guess it's 'wait and see', like everything else that has to do with budgies! :rofl:

 

 

I also think d'Artagnan is some kind of pied, but not sure on that, either. I had hoped it was rec. pied, but I think his cere is too blue for that. Same with Aramis, cere is not pink. But Aramis could be a df dom pied, or a combo pied.

 

 

Well, here are some more pictures of the lot:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GORGEOUS Birds! I think Porthos may also be a pied? Aramis is an opaline pied I think.

I will leave it to the experts though...

Thank you, Squeak!

very nice birds Finnie. I was observing the pics and noticed you put the obituary section in the cage, rofl. We try and get a variety of birds. I think the only two the same are our two grey green males. we our currently sitting on 15 Budgies, but that could change lol.

very nice birds Finnie. I was observing the pics and noticed you put the obituary section in the cage, rofl. We try and get a variety of birds. I think the only two the same are our two grey green males. we our currently sitting on 15 Budgies, but that could change lol.

 

Thanks, Tomlou!

 

I noticed the obits, too, after I took all the pictures!

I feel a little guilty about airing people's dead loved ones on the internet, but there's no way I'm re-doing the whole photo shoot!

 

I always think I am picking out unique mutations, but when I go down and look at my flock, it seems that almost all of my birds are light blue, grey wings and yellow faces, in some combination or other. I guess there is a trend in what I like. I have never even yet owned or hatched out a light green normal!

 

And speaking of 15 budgies, I guess I better go change my number of birds kept from 15 to 19.

Lovely and unusual birds!

Thank you, Nubbly!

Thank you, Nubbly!

 

The birds are beautiful, Finnie! We have the same taste in colors

Very nice Finnie, love the "pastel" look of your birds very pretty. Good luck with your future plans.

Thank you, Gracegarden and Robyn!

okay, so after a week of trying to call my beautiful new girls 'Athos' and 'Porthos', I can't stand it any more! They are getting girl names.

 

Athos (in front) will be 'Athena' and Porthos will be 'Portia' :party0011:

 

 

 

 

 

Look! Portia is growing a new flight feather. All four of them are moulting right now, and they look so cute with their pinnie heads! :happy-dancing:

They are beautiful!

I missed this thread, those ares some cute budgies :happy-dancing:

Cool budgies, :happy-dancing: they almost look like they are rainbow, congratulations on your new acquisitions.

Thank you, Ratzy and Cory!

 

Cool budgies, they almost look like they are rainbow, congratulations on your new acquisitions.

 

Thank you, Harry, but now look what you have done!! You have caused me to go and do a search to find out what a rainbow budgie is, and now I am compelled to add 'rainbow' to my list of mutations/combinations that I must try to achieve!! :glare:

 

Here are some links I have found:

 

UK Forum, rainbow budgies

Sabrina Kaiser website (in German, but great photos)

UK Forum also

BBC Topic on Rainbows

 

I guess a true rainbow is not supposed to have cinnamon, or any pied. It's supposed to be yf2 opaline clearwing. I'm not good at telling the difference between the dilute varieties, so I don't think I would be successful at getting the true clearwing in there. But I could do it in a greywing, and hope it looked close enough.

 

Actually, in my first clutch ever, I came very close to producing a yf2 opaline greywing. If you look in my signature (at least, until I change it ) you will see the 3 chicks I kept from that clutch. One is a yf2 greywing male who is split for opaline, one is an opaline greywing, and one is a yf2 opaline normal, who could be split for greywing. It's too bad I didn't let those parents go a second round before I sold them.

 

Anyway, I'm sure I can use these four new birds to achieve a rainbow, especially if I pair them with the chicks from my siggy.

 

So thanks for the idea, Harry. My husband will, I'm sure, appreciate the extra breeding I will now need to do!