PIED SOCIETY FINCHES

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A MOTTLED SILVER PIED

(The Silver is a combination of chestnut and clearwing and is not a single gene)

 

 

 

 

The Silver Pied is available in both Recessive and Marked White Pied. This color combination is a rare in the US and apparently popular in the UK, where the name Silver is derived. While this color is appropriately called Silver, genetically, these birds are Clearwing Chestnuts. The Chestnut color is all but gone, and the bird shows a bright silvery/buff color, mottled with white. This double gene combination does breed true and is recessive to other colors. Silver is particularly attractive as a Self.

 

THE MARKED WHITE PIED SOCIETY

 

The Marked White Society Finch is simply a variety of pied that more white than colored when compared to the more common Mottled Pied Society, with comparatively smaller amount of colored areas. Marked White Pieds usually have completely white wings, breast and belly. The pigmented areas are often restricted to the crown, mantle and rump regions. It is a handsome Pied, I personally consider the Marked White Pieds to be more attractive than Mottled Pieds. The Marked White Pied seems less common in US collections than the Mottled Pieds. My first Marked White Pieds actually originated from Taiwan in South-east Asia in 1972. They were among a shipment of some of the last birds to enter the US before the first band on bird importation was implemented. Now they are relatively often encountered, though Mottled Pieds still redominate in most collection. Marked White Pieds are very popular on the show bench and some very nice large European Marked Whites have found there way to the US. Show Quality Marked White Pied

 

 

 

Marked White FAWN

PIED

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marked White CHOCOLATE

PIED

 

 

 

 

 

CRESTED SOCIETY ------These birds can have a full crest on the crown, some even have double crest. Crested Societies can be found in all most all color varieties but is more common in the pied forms. The Crest mutation is Marked White and only one parent need be crested to produce good crested offspring. However, I find that there is no danger in breeding crest to crest in societies. Furthermore, the idea that a bird can be crest bred, implying that is somehow carries the gene from a crested parent is absurd. This statement appeared in Finches and Softbill Birds by Bates and Busenbark and has been perpetuated since then. There is no fact or truth to the statement.

THE ALL WHITE "Dark eyed" SOCIETY------Believe it or not, the Dark eyed White Society is not a self, even though it is all white, it is a pied bird. Thats correct, the Dark eyed White Society is actually a Pied Society, which does not have any colored patches. These all white birds are produced whenever heavy Marked White Society finches are bred to each other. Often two heavily Pied "Marked Whites" will produce 25 to 50% all Whites in a nest. If two Dark eye Whites are intbred the majority of the offspring will be Solid Whites, but not all. Often times crossing two all White will produce an occasional Pied offspring.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION ABOUT WHITE SOCIETY FINCHES

Are White Societies prone to blindness?

ANSWER:

Yes they certainly can be, but not all of them are destined to become blind. From my observations, Whites are prone to blindness if they are descended from a Fawn Marked White ancestry. Fawn Societies have light colored ---red pigmented eyes, and solid Whites that are produced from Fawn Pieds often have bright pink eyes and very poor eyesight. Some are so white, they look like albinos.

While these birds might appear identical to albinos, keep in mind, they are not true albinos. The true Albino Society is derived from a separate gene unrelatd to Pieds and Dark eye Whites. Often as these red-eyed Whites mature or as they grow old, they seem to be predisposed to developing cataracts in the eyes and often become blind.

Whites produced from Chocolate ancestry that have dark eyes are less likely to develop blindness. I have bred dark-eyed Whites for years now and no blindness has developed in these birds. Nevertheless, blindness in some strains of Whites can be a common occurrence. Blindness as I know it, is generally restricted to White Societies. --- it is very rare to find blind birds in other colors of Society Finches. In such cases it is more likely due to age.