Colours & Mutations (7)

Some very rare budgie mutations

• Anthracite (black budgies)

The anthracite budgie has a very, very dark grey or black body colour. All markings are normal, except for the cheek patches, which are also black. The darkening effect of a single factor anthracite budgie is similar to what a single dark factor does. A budgie that is double factor anthracite appears as the true anthracite variety with the black body colour.



















Left: the anthracite budgie has a very dark body colour and black cheek patches.
Right: This yellow-faced blue budgie has the standard blue cheek patches.

• Blackface

Blackface is a new mutation that produces a budgie with a striping pattern that runs over his whole body. This mutation also causes a darkening of the body feather colour. These budgies are extremely rare and not known to be kept anywhere else than in the Netherlands.

















Two blackface budgies (photos from tailfeathersnetwork.com)

• Mottled

A mottled budgie looks like a normal budgie when it hatches. But after every molt, more and more feathers grow back as clear feathers, forming a colour pattern that looks much more random than a pied budgie. Some mottled budgies eventually become all clear.



















Mottled budgies: they look a bit fluffy, which is really sweet. Notice the random colour pattern (photos: budgieplace.com)

• Lacewing

A lacewing is in fact a combination of a lutino/albino and a cinnamon. The budgie is either mostly yellow or mostly white, the body feather colour is only slightly visible. The budgie's markings are of a light cinnamon colour and the cheek patches are violet. A lacewing has red/pink eyes. The adult male has purple ceres, while the female keeps the normal white, brown or tan ceres.

Photo: a lacewing budgie, almost entirely white, but the blue body feather colour is slightly visible on its belly.

• Half-Sider

This budgie looks very astonishing but it is not a true variety, because the trait is not genetically inherited. It is actually a result of genetic abnormalities, a form of congenital chimerism, in which fraternal twin zygotes fuse together at a very early stage in the womb, forming one individual creature.

















Half-sider budgie: extremely rare. (Photos from budgieplace.com)