# The Lutino that isn't... so what is it?



## Kiwigal67

UPDATE: Found to be Lutino Pearl Pied split Whiteface. Thanks to all who helped...

We have just received a new cockatiel - Kirei - that the previous owner was told was an albino. We had to tell him the bad news that she certainly was not albino. If anything it has classic Lutino colourings - yellow-white all over, orange cheeks, even the proverbial lutino bald patch - with possibly some pearl characteristics as well (see photo for wing pearling). The catch is - NO RED EYES - which has really thrown a spanner in the works. Everyone we have had look say the same thing - eyes are dark brown and definitely not deep/dark red.

UPDATE: We understand this is last season's chick if that helps.




























As requested, with a flash (although not very successfully):









Plan B: Darkened room with a torch shining onto her face and flash:



















One of her from the back:









Underwings:
Feathers 3,4 and 5 look to be spotless on this side:









Feathers 4,5 and 6 look to be spotless on this side:









UPDATE:
I have just found a possible answer thanks to Mr Google: *a clear pied*. Never having seen one before this option wasn't immediately obvious to us. Does this sound feasible or are we barking up the wrong tree? (Answer: Wrong tree  )


Many thanks,
Helen.


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## MeanneyFids

she is most definitely a lutino.

she is a lutino pearl split pied whiteface


the pied split causes the lighter eyes instead of red. take a photo with flash, the eyes will have a red eye flash


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## xoxsarahxox

The bird is a lutino pearl. When other genes are mixed with lutino they can change the eye colour. Here is a collage illustrating the colours of lutino eyes due to other genes, http://s525.photobucket.com/albums/...rds/?action=view&current=EYE-Lutino-ILLUS.jpg


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## MeanneyFids

thanks for that sarah


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## Mentha

I'd say she is a lutino pearl pied. The wing feathers don't look like a normal lutino's they look clear.


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## WendyBeoBuddy

Please take a picture with flash, if she really does have brown eyes, then i would like to see something.

either way, if she has red eyes in the flash, she is a lutino pearl pied.how cute!
i don't think /wf because the streaking at the very beginning does NOT go all the way into the cheek patch, and there is no halo either.


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## MeanneyFids

regardless the cheek patch is also square with streaking, she is split whiteface.

and regardless of the eye flash, this bird is a lutino pearl. no other mutation is patterned like this.


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## Kiwigal67

Thanks for all of your replies. I have added three more photos in the original posting, all taken with flash, as requested to hopefully shed more light (no pun intended) on our dilemma. It is still good to know our first impressions (eyes excepted) was almost on the money.

Thanks,
Helen


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## MeanneyFids

she is a lutino pearl split whiteface. she may either be a visual pied or a split pied, that can be determined by looking at her wings, as mentha has mentioned they do look unmarked.

can you spread them and look under them, are there any without spots? you may need bright light to see.


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## bjknight93

I think she is a lutino pearl pied split wf. A picture of the back would help determine if she is pied. Whatever she is, she is a GORGEOUS bird.


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## Kiwigal67

Picture from the back and underwings added. As annotated, there appears to be 3 feathers on each wing underside that are spotless.

Helen.


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## MeanneyFids

then your bird is a lutino pearl pied split whiteface 


cannot be clear pied. pieds cannot have the pearls like that. lutinos do. plus a clear pied would also have no spots in the wings like that either. clear pieds are completely solid colour, no spots or pearls. either all yellow with orange cheeks or all white with DARK eyes. your birds eyes are still very light and this is another lutino trait.


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## Kiwigal67

I assume the missing spots = visual pied. Learnt something else new today 

So genetically then, if I understand this right, we have

lutino pearl pied split whiteface = XLP Y pp wN

Thank you all for the help. After the last couple of days crash course learning the end-to-end genetics nomenclature and now an actual example to help with the practical understanding of it, it seems next season the budgies might be taking a back seat to the cockatiels going forward. (and yes this is a good thing  )

Helen.


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## MeanneyFids

the flight feathers with no spots are pied feathers, which makes your bird a visual pied


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## Kiwigal67

bjknight93 said:


> I think she is a lutino pearl pied split wf. A picture of the back would help determine if she is pied. Whatever she is, she is a GORGEOUS bird.


Thank you. Just glad we rescued her. She can't fly and can hardly walk or perch on our hand, let alone perch on our finger. A lot of love and attention over the next few weeks. She will sit on your chest and mostly climbs around our shoulders and sits on the (bare) back of our neck! Always wanting attention. I am trying to quarantine her from my other birds as we have an extremely chatty grey male Buddy, a he/she Lutino (Louie) but thinking a she and two 2 month old greys which I don't want to catch any diseases. Also got a Day 5 cockatiel chick we are handraising as mum died in the aviary after laying a few eggs! Was hoping to mate Kiara to the dad Alex but he is a Grey Cinnamon Pearl possibly split whiteface so that is a no-no. Guess we will try the Lutino Louie with Alex.


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## Kiwigal67

DallyTsuka said:


> then your bird is a lutino pearl pied split whiteface
> 
> 
> cannot be clear pied. pieds cannot have the pearls like that. lutinos do. plus a clear pied would also have no spots in the wings like that either. clear pieds are completely solid colour, no spots or pearls. either all yellow with orange cheeks or all white with DARK eyes. your birds eyes are still very light and this is another lutino trait.


Thank you so much for all your answers and helpful hints on how to find them. I love cockatiels they are so beautiful. Hopefully we will get Kiara on the mend and a better bird. At least she is hand tame (ish). What are those patches by her eyes with no feathers? She also has feather loss under her "armpits"!!

Just trying to work out what to feed her. She came from a cage that is dirty, small (for a cockatiel) and overcrowded with overflowing food dishes. I have given her budgie seed with pigeon express to help boost her, piminix, cuttlefish, fine oyster grit and a millet spray. She isn't underweight but I think she has no condition because she can't stand, walk or even fly properly. She won't eat apple but then we only got her yesterday (nearly 2am now! - Just fed Baby again!):wacko:


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## Kiwigal67

DallyTsuka said:


> the flight feathers with no spots are pied feathers, which makes your bird a visual pied


My husband used to help his Uncle with budgies when he was a young child so got into genetics. Now I am getting him into understanding Cockatiel genetics. He is in his element - too much brain function for me! He has been on the internet googling all afternoon trying to work out what Kiara is! Many thanks for your help (now we can get some sleep - Baby's brooder temp has stabilised and "his" crop is full (for now). The alarm is set for 6am so I had better get some rest myself! Many thanks once again - you are all a fountain of knowledge!


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## bjknight93

Was she in a cage without perches? That will cause muscle atrophy in the feet. It will take her some time to regain her muscles and she might not ever function the same way as your other birds.

Here is a way to teach her to fly

http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=32235


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## MeanneyFids

the feather loss in the face and under the wings is concerning. can you get her tested for giardia? she will likely need 3 tests for it.


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## DannyA

Lol my brain hurts!!! most confusing thread i've ever read! haha (i was a poet and didn't even know itX))lol!


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