Mutation help...

[pawsitivelycrazy]

Hi everyone...I wanted to know what mutation these cockatiels are with the white head but darker cheeks and face...Thanks for your help

 

[Birdbabe]

Whiteface pied something? They sure are pretty!

 

[sunnysmom]

Whiteface pied something? They sure are pretty!

I was going to say whiteface pied too. They are beautiful.

 

[alcmene]

I agree with whiteface pied. Cutie pies too!

 

[Robyn]

Definitely white faced pied.

 

[Monica]

There's also a whiteface pearl pied in the bunch!

 

[Toffee's owner]

There's also a whiteface pearl pied in the bunch!

Whats a PEARL pied? I think my birds breeder lady said thats what my bird is.. not sure but that wording rings a bell.

 

[camelotshadow]

pearl has little spots all over 4th from right on 2nd picture

 

[Toffee's owner]

Ohh right thanks!
In that case, my birds a Pied as well

 

[Monica]

This bird in the foreground is a pearl.

This bird is a light pied.

This last tiel is a cinnamon pearl pied

Vincenso, your cockatiel is not a pearl, but he is a pied. If your tiel is in fact a male (and not a young, talking hen), then it's possible that he's a pied split for pearl - meaning that if you were to ever breed him, he could at least throw female pearl offspring every now and then.

 

[Toffee's owner]

Thanks..Yeah hes a Pied and nah hes a male for sure. I can almost hold a conversation with him the way he talks. He also has the shorter tail males have. Males just look different in their faces, the little hairs and whiskers they seem to have, my females never had then either. I would laugh my head off if he popped and egg one day

 

[Monica]

Adult males actually have longer tails than females do, at least this has been my observation. It's a very minute difference, but one that I have noticed. When they are young and before their first molt, they have female coloration, so if they have shorter tails once feathering out for the first time, that wouldn't surprise me. They wont start their first molt until AT LEAST 4-6 months in age, although it could be as late as 12 months in age before the first molt into adult coloration. Being that your cockatiel is a pied, he might not change too much in coloration. He may even keep his "dirty face" for life, because he's pied.


Cockatiels are sexually dimorphic, but pied is one of the anti-dimorphic mutations out there, meaning that other factors may be required to identify the gender of the bird. From the sounds of it, you do have a male though!



The three cockatiels I posted pictures of are all females (not counting the male in the background of the first image). The pied hen (middle tiel) can also wolf whistle.



BTW, here are close up pictures of Casey, the third hen's face! I like her little hairs!

 

[Toffee's owner]

I read somewhere generally, males tails are slightly thicker and slightly shorter, will try and find that..
Those pictures are great, but Ill try to put up some close shots of Toffees face, hes only 12 weeks but has WAY more little whiskers than your doll.

Edit// Reading about the tails, it may simply be that females generally have a smaller body than a full grown male maybe..?