Budgerigar Colours and Mutations
The Budgerigar once called the undulated parakeet was only available in the one colour combination of green, yellow and black.
Now we have vibrant colours, pattern combinations and varieties that have transformed the wild budgerigar into budgerigars of outstanding beauty, they are easy to manage, will breed in most conditions and make wonderful pets.
The Budgerigar has been known by several names which include the Undulated Parakeet, Grass Parakeet and Zebra Parrot. The name Budgerigar means “good food”, the Australian aboriginal translation for good was “boodgeree” and the end part “gai”meant food or to eat.
These birds were introduced to

THE CLEARBODY - There are two types of clearbodies the Texas and the Easley.The Texas Clearbody is sex-linked, the Easley Clearbody is
dominant .
Texas clearbodies.




Texas Clearbody - body colour white or yellow suffused - cheek patches violet - eyes black with a white iris - wings black markings - flights pale
grey - tail dark blue - feet and legs black/grey mottled.
The standard for the Texas Clearbody is to have no colour in the body feathers leaving only yellow or white,depending if the bird is yellow or
white based of course. The clearbody can have some colour in it's body of up to a 50% dilution, in this case the body colour is stronger towards
the rump and vent area.This variety is dominant over inos and if paired to a lutino or albino you will get clearbody chicks.
Opaline Texas Clearbody Greygreen
The Easley Clearbody.

Easley Clearbody Green.
Blackface / Coalface
The Slate Blue.
Slate is a color-adding factor similar to grey and violet. Slate produces a very dark bluish grey in white based budgies. The darkness of the slate varies slightly according to the dark factor of the bird. Slate, like violet, can be present in a green (yellow-based) budgie, but only produces a darkening effect. True slate only appears on blue (white-based) budgies.


MOTTLED or should this be a pied?
A mottled budgie is hatched looking like a normal budgie. With each moult, more and more of the budgie's feathers grow back clear. The budgie
starts to look somewhat like a pied only with a more random, mottled pattern of clear feathers than the established varieties of pied. The amount
of mottling an individual budgie has varies.
ANTHRACITE.
The anthracite is a very dark greyish black body colour with cheek patches to match.
SADDLEBACKS.
In the saddleback variety which looks very much like an opaline, the budgie's markings are dark grey on the head and into the saddle area of the
shoulders and top of the wings. These markings return to the normal black at the bottom of the wings. Where as the opalines wings are the same
colour as it's body the saddlebacks wings are much lighter in colour, the body color does not appear on the head or wings of the saddleback.
Dark Green
The Brownwing appears visually as a Cinnamon except for the markings being deep dull dark brown, not Cinnamon light brown. It has a full, undiluted
body color (whereas the Cinnamon causes a dilution). Also on hatching chicks do not have red eyes - their eyes, throughout life are dark with a white
iris. This mutation is recessive in inheritance (unlike the cinnamon sex-linked genetics). It is thought to have been a lost mutation, however a few
sources throughout the years have seen this variety emerge and are struggling to revive it.
Have you any pictures of Brownwings ?
HALF SIDERS.
These birds are the result of a breakdown within the orderly cell divisions during the process of reproduction .
Below are some wonderful halfsiders of Mohammed Atef from Egypt.

Light green/Violet Dominant Pied.

Light green / lutino
Many thanks Mohammed for the use of these wonderful budgerigar pictures.
Feather Dusters
Feather Dusters are a mutation produced when two rare genes meet.I have F D as i call him ( pictured below at 42 days old) who eats constantly
to try and supply his body with the nutrients needed to feed the constant feather growth associated with this mutation.I do not expect F D to live
longer than four months he cannot fly, never utters a sound,appears to be blind,deaf and retarded.These birds seldom survive to adulthood.

F D my spangle violet feather duster - Cobalt Feather Duster
Opaline grey feather duster,coursesy of Lee Marshall. Violet feather duster
.
Meet Curly Sue a Cinnamon Greygreen , courtesy of Maryann Rizzo


Yellow Face Grey F D , Thanks Gordon
Rainbow.
A rainbow is a composite budgerigar that carries opaline , clearwing and yellow or golden face on a blue series bird.




Japanese Helicopter
A new mutation ? This was bred in Palestine and i am still waiting for news of the siblings and parents,
Please note i am always looking for variety pictures,can YOU help? This page is still under construction.