LINNIE GENETIC BASICS
© Eddie’s Aviary – reproduce only with permission please
Please check the sticky on Genetic Basics before reading this if new to genetics. That thread has simple definitions to the terms used here, and will really help you on your way. Once done with this document, check out the Genetic Inheritance thread for more info if you are craving more. Keep reading these articles and we promise, it WILL just click when you least expect it, so keep at it and please ask questions. Once you have the definitions and inheritance understood, read Proper Pairing Protocols before starting.
GREEN SERIES – green in Linnies is DOMINANT. This means that without a split to turquoise, one green in a pair yields 100% phenotypical (visual) offspring. In the US, most green birds are split to turquoise. This includes the other green series birds:
The Rules of Inheritance are different for cock birds because they get one Z chromosome from each parent, and a gene for a mutation on one Z will be paired up with a gene on the other Z. The sex-linked mutations are recessive, so males must get the gene from both parents in order to be visual. If they only get the gene from one parent, they will be split (split ino in this case) (carry the gene without being visual) and can pass the gene along to their own offspring. If the dam (mother bird) is not visual ino, any ino chicks in the nest will be female. Remember: The W chromosome does not carry genes for color (mutation).
GREYWING (both sf + df): The Greywing mutation in Linnies is both sex-linked and incomplete dominant. It is incomplete dominant as only one parent needs to be greywing to get a visual, but it is “incomplete” as not every baby would be greywing. Greywing young from a greywing hen will only be male. If you desire greywing babies of either sex, you will need the greywing in your pair to be male. Remember that it is unethical to pair two GW birds together, and that sf gw males can sometimes be mistaken for a normal barred bird, so be sure to ask for help if you aren’t sure if your male is greywing. Photographs taken without a flash in indirect light are best to judge. Please take photos of your bird from the side on a perch, as well as a picture with the wing spread.
GREYWING INO: In the United States, Greywing Ino is VERY rare. The mutation occurs when a baby receives the ino AND greywing gene. In a non-recommended pairing of a greywing x ino, the probability of getting a visual GW ino is 1:1000 offspring. This very small percentage of visual babies from the pairing makes that choice a poor one to try to get one instead of just buying a visual or split to gw ino bird from one of the US breeders working with them. We no longer raise them, as the feather structure and size made them not competitive in exhibition but are happy to turn you on to the ethical breeders in the US that started with our stock. As of 2020, they still command a hefty price tag.
When trying to get a visual baby from a known gw ino, you should pair it to any normal barred bird (not gw and not another red-eyed ino). The sf gw male offspring from that pairing will be CARRIERS to the gw ino gene, so this project takes 2 generations before achieiving the great 35% odds of a visual from those pairings. In closing, it is the sf gw split to gw ino males that have the most value as you skip a generation before being able to potentially produce visual offspring.
All ino (both lutino and creamino) should show some barring like a normal barred bird, except it will be almost white. Greywing ino have these markings, but the color will be more like a soft grey or brown. Regular inos that have been raised on newspaper cage bottoms can get the newsprint ink onto their feathering and trick the eye, so be sure to ask the breeder to spray the bird for a couple of days and remove newsprint from the cage to help you (or the mentor helping you) to identify them.
Be careful when working with this rare mutation, please use greens in those pairings as that will help keep the strength of the feather structure intact, as well as keeping the size up of your birds.
If you have ANY questions about any of the information above, please start a thread to receive answers. It is always best to be armed with a good understanding of what you are doing BEFORE starting, or you will undoubtedly be scrambling later to re-pair by purchasing new mates.
If you enjoy this Forum, or the Content found here helpful.... consider buying the author a coffee. Helps with website costs, and keeps motivation levels up for more late night work. Thank you
CLICK HERE to Buy Me A Coffee
© Eddie’s Aviary – reproduce only with permission please
Please check the sticky on Genetic Basics before reading this if new to genetics. That thread has simple definitions to the terms used here, and will really help you on your way. Once done with this document, check out the Genetic Inheritance thread for more info if you are craving more. Keep reading these articles and we promise, it WILL just click when you least expect it, so keep at it and please ask questions. Once you have the definitions and inheritance understood, read Proper Pairing Protocols before starting.
GREEN SERIES – green in Linnies is DOMINANT. This means that without a split to turquoise, one green in a pair yields 100% phenotypical (visual) offspring. In the US, most green birds are split to turquoise. This includes the other green series birds:
- Normal green (wild type)
- Dark Green (one dark factor)
- Olive (double dark factor)
- Lutino (green series ino, can mask dark factors, so check parentage for possible hidden dark factors to avoid pairing dd x dd)
- Turquoise
- Cobalt (one dark factor)
- Mauve (double dark factor)
- Creamino (turquoise ino, can mask dark factors, check parentage for possible hidden dark factors to avoid dd x dd pairings)
The Rules of Inheritance are different for cock birds because they get one Z chromosome from each parent, and a gene for a mutation on one Z will be paired up with a gene on the other Z. The sex-linked mutations are recessive, so males must get the gene from both parents in order to be visual. If they only get the gene from one parent, they will be split (split ino in this case) (carry the gene without being visual) and can pass the gene along to their own offspring. If the dam (mother bird) is not visual ino, any ino chicks in the nest will be female. Remember: The W chromosome does not carry genes for color (mutation).
GREYWING (both sf + df): The Greywing mutation in Linnies is both sex-linked and incomplete dominant. It is incomplete dominant as only one parent needs to be greywing to get a visual, but it is “incomplete” as not every baby would be greywing. Greywing young from a greywing hen will only be male. If you desire greywing babies of either sex, you will need the greywing in your pair to be male. Remember that it is unethical to pair two GW birds together, and that sf gw males can sometimes be mistaken for a normal barred bird, so be sure to ask for help if you aren’t sure if your male is greywing. Photographs taken without a flash in indirect light are best to judge. Please take photos of your bird from the side on a perch, as well as a picture with the wing spread.
GREYWING INO: In the United States, Greywing Ino is VERY rare. The mutation occurs when a baby receives the ino AND greywing gene. In a non-recommended pairing of a greywing x ino, the probability of getting a visual GW ino is 1:1000 offspring. This very small percentage of visual babies from the pairing makes that choice a poor one to try to get one instead of just buying a visual or split to gw ino bird from one of the US breeders working with them. We no longer raise them, as the feather structure and size made them not competitive in exhibition but are happy to turn you on to the ethical breeders in the US that started with our stock. As of 2020, they still command a hefty price tag.
When trying to get a visual baby from a known gw ino, you should pair it to any normal barred bird (not gw and not another red-eyed ino). The sf gw male offspring from that pairing will be CARRIERS to the gw ino gene, so this project takes 2 generations before achieiving the great 35% odds of a visual from those pairings. In closing, it is the sf gw split to gw ino males that have the most value as you skip a generation before being able to potentially produce visual offspring.
All ino (both lutino and creamino) should show some barring like a normal barred bird, except it will be almost white. Greywing ino have these markings, but the color will be more like a soft grey or brown. Regular inos that have been raised on newspaper cage bottoms can get the newsprint ink onto their feathering and trick the eye, so be sure to ask the breeder to spray the bird for a couple of days and remove newsprint from the cage to help you (or the mentor helping you) to identify them.
Be careful when working with this rare mutation, please use greens in those pairings as that will help keep the strength of the feather structure intact, as well as keeping the size up of your birds.
If you have ANY questions about any of the information above, please start a thread to receive answers. It is always best to be armed with a good understanding of what you are doing BEFORE starting, or you will undoubtedly be scrambling later to re-pair by purchasing new mates.
If you enjoy this Forum, or the Content found here helpful.... consider buying the author a coffee. Helps with website costs, and keeps motivation levels up for more late night work. Thank you
CLICK HERE to Buy Me A Coffee