Do all B&G's have black spots?

[Shezbug]

I am just wondering if all B&G's have little black dots on their feathers on the inside of their legs.
The last little leg feathers on Burt (feathers closest to his dino feet) have big black dots/spots/blotches, only the ones on the inside of his little legs have them and they are only on a few of the feathers. They are not on the outside of his legs or any where else he has yellow feathering. I have tried to look at every picture of B&G's to see if I can see it on other birds but I have not been able to see into the same spot where Burt has them to find out if other B&G's have them.
It is not something I am worried about, I am just really curious if others have them.

 

[faislaq]

Could it be bronzing? I know Buzzard's feathers all over get blackish bits to them if they're where he rubs where he plays the hardest, but it's usually more towards the ends of his longer feathers that bump things. It's like the color rubs off somehow. It's my understanding that older, less rambunctious birds have prettier feathers, but Buzzard is 15 and gets a few. He's only half B&G but I can look around his legs in the morning.

 

[Shezbug]

I do not think it is bronzing and in fact I am pretty certain it is not that. When I first noticed them I thought they were food or muck of some sort so I kept an eye on them and over time they were still there. I just can not get him to stay still long enough for me to get a close good look at them. Maybe I need a magnifying glass like @Lady Jane uses to check her birds feathers hehe. They look like nice little spots right in the middle of his feathers, not all of them but just a few at the bottom of his little legs. It is definitely on the feathers and not the skin, they feel normal so I can only think they are a bit like some of the feathers they have where two colors meet and the edges are a little different to the middles.

 

[Shezbug]

I do know what you mean about them being rough on the feathers and them looking like the color has gone. Burt has beat his feathers up so bad that he seriously looks abused and then put through the tumble dryer he is a real mess at the moment but he has been having lots of fun so it is ok to look like he has been dumpster diving I think

 

[Macawnutz]

Bronzing will not occur on a yellow feather of a BG. It would just become thin and worn. In my experience there are many feathers on macaws that will not bronze. They are different quality/color and wear thin instead of discolor.

Head, shoulder, wing and tail feathers will discolor on a BG. Throat, belly, underwing and leg feathers will not. The long blue vent feathers attached at the base of the tail are included in the bronze list.

Its the same for other macaw species but gets slightly tricky. Red and yellow feathers do not bronze the same. They wear more than discolor. Like stress bars, the red and yellow feathers don't seem to have the same pigments and often turn white or transparent instead of purple or dark.

I could do a book with pictures, I love feathers so much....

Now, switch species. The belly of DBY amazons can bronze but not the tail while none of the feathers on an umbrella cockatoo will bronze, they only wear. It's tricky... lol. It's all about the quality kind and color of the feather.

To answer your question, I believe some BG have a few off colored feathers at their ankles. I will look later but I believe either Korbel or Kailua has one or two. Kind of like the green shimmering beard that some of them have and some dont.

It would be easier if you LEARNED HOW TO POST PICTURES! I will fix that though.

 

[faislaq]

It would be easier if you LEARNED HOW TO POST PICTURES! I will fix that though.

Uh oh @Shezbug, I see you have a "reminder" as well. All in caps no less!

I can't say I'm surprised though. Your little guy is her favorite species & Burt is exceptionally adorable. I'll bet you already have dozens of photos of that precious fellow.

 

[Shezbug]

Ummmmm so sorry. I do not know why I can not post them. I will do what I should be doing today then see if I can get the kids to sit down and try and figure it out. I have a feeling it is a combination of things. The pic tries to load but nothing happens even after an hour of waiting. I had a similar problem trying to send of my assessments for a course I am doing online and we ended up having to use whatsapp so I could send my assessments.

 

[Shezbug]

I now see why I was told by @saroj12 to post pics of Burt. I see I now have a lovely new banner!!! Thanks for that

 

[Shezbug]

So my daughter has worked out that my pictures are not posting because they are either way too big or because they have been taken in the wrong format. Hopefully I will have some pics posted by the end of today, she is going to plug her phone into my laptop and give me some of her pictures to post (was going to post the clapping hands but I can not find it lol)

 

[Shezbug]

Behold, it is Burt

 

[Shezbug]

Will try to get some more pics today and post some better shots

 

[faislaq]

Yay! It's Burt! He's so cute playing with "his" phone. I need to kiss those cheeks!

 

[Shezbug]

Yay! It's Burt! He's so cute playing with "his" phone. I need to kiss those cheeks!

Hehe. That was Burt’s first introduction to Barry. I am trying to get him to stop trying to break my phone, lol. He has noticed his tongue can move the pictures on the screen so that has settled him a bit with killing the phone.
I just tried to get more pics and all I could get was Burt throwing himself at my phone, I think I may have got maybe one half decent shot. Will have to check it out

 

[Macawnutz]

He has a BIG HEAD! So funny as he really has a small baby looking beak...

Yup, need more.

 

[Shezbug]

The photo of him with my phone is from yesterday but the other pic is from a few months ago, when I look at the pics from a few months ago I find it so hard to believe how much he has changed.

 

[Shezbug]

 

[Shezbug]

 

[Shezbug]

He was trying to earn some treats here by showing me his big wings but he got a little excited and thought maybe a wave would be the thing that got him a treat. I love it when he cycles through everything trying to let me know he wants to train and get pine nuts

 

[Shezbug]

 

[Macawnutz]

The photo of him with my phone is from yesterday but the other pic is from a few months ago, when I look at the pics from a few months ago I find it so hard to believe how much he has changed.

Yes, the picture in the cage looks like an older picture to me. He looks tired and unsure, not confident and bold like in the rest.

Scrutinizing his feathers I see nothing but healthy in your photos. If he has off colored ankle feathers I would consider it normal for him. His feathering is beautiful... Minus the tail But... a messy tail takes forever to fix and some birds never get that right. LOL

My only concern is your leg band. Really shows not a lot of wiggle room. Does it spin and move freely? ... Not that you want too much room either but it looks tighter than it should to me.