Blue mutation in the Eclectus parrot

15/12/2023

The blue mutation in the Eclectus parrot (Eclectus roratus): how it arises and is inherited, and the DNA test that confirms split carriers.

In the Eclectus parrot (Eclectus roratus), a rare mutation occurs in aviculture within some populations that produces a beautiful blue colour of the plumage. The male is light blue, while the female shows a combination of dark blue, white and grey. These birds are highly sought after among enthusiasts, and large sums are often paid for blue birds and (possibly) split birds.

At NeorniLab we have succeeded, as the first European laboratory, in developing a genetic test that can detect the genetic variation responsible for the blue mutation in the Eclectus parrot (Eclectus roratus).

But how exactly does that work? In this article we give some more information about this unique genetic test in the Eclectus parrot.

About the blue colour mutation in the Eclectus parrot

Origin

According to some sources, the first blue Eclectus parrots are said to have appeared in the early 1990s.

Colour mutations often arise spontaneously in a population with a certain degree of inbreeding. That is because recessive traits then have a greater chance of appearing. The blue phenotype (the outward expression of a genetic background) in Eclectus parrots is also a recessive mutation. That means birds only show a blue plumage when the allele is present in double (once from the father, once from the mother). Birds that do not carry the mutation (called wild type) or birds that have the allele only once (called carriers or split birds) will therefore show the normal wild colour.

Cause

Blue and red make green

In a number of parrots (order Psittaciformes), psittacofulvin is produced. Psittacofulvin is a yellow-red pigment in the plumage. Together with the blue structural colour of the feathers, this makes the male largely green. In the female, which is largely blue-red, the disappearance of the red pigment brings out a different structural colour in the areas that are normally red and therefore have no blue structural colour.

The genetic variation that we at NeorniLab discovered in Eclectus parrots causes a disruption in the production of this red pigment. As a result, the pigment is no longer produced as it should be, and in certain feather areas the blue or grey-white structural colour of the feathers comes to the fore.

Inheritance

The inheritance of the blue mutation is autosomal recessive. That makes the following combinations possible:

Split × Split gives 25% blue, 50% split, 25% wild type
Split × Blue gives 50% blue and 50% split
Split × Wild type gives 50% split and 50% wild type
Blue × Blue gives 100% blue

Genetic test

At NeorniLab we have recently succeeded, as the first European laboratory, in developing a genetic test that can detect the genetic variation responsible for the blue mutation in the Eclectus parrot (Eclectus roratus). After extensive testing of a large number of birds, we have developed a reliable method to identify split birds.

What is the great advantage of this test?

Until now, split birds were often sold as "possibly split". This has consequences:

On the one hand, as a breeder you first have to have bred blue Eclectus parrots from a pair to be sure that both Eclectus parrots carry the mutation. For that you have to keep the birds for a long time, they have to be willing to breed, and you also have to breed enough offspring to be sure. Split birds in pairs where only one of the parents is split go undetected, and valuable parent birds are therefore not used optimally.

On the other hand, as a seller you cannot demonstrate that your birds are 100% certain carriers of the mutation, and all birds are therefore bought as "possibly split". So even if the seller is acting in good faith, it is difficult to prove that the birds are definitely split.

That changes now:

- Thanks to this genetic test, you can demonstrate via your unique NeorniLab certificate that the birds carry the mutation (definitely split).
- You can breed towards the blue mutation in a more targeted and faster way. The use of "test pairings" to identify any split birds is no longer necessary.

Blue mutation in the Eclectus parrot

About the blue colour mutation in the Eclectus parrot

Origin

Cause

Inheritance

Genetic test

Curious which DNA is present in your bloodline?

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