Black feathers on Eckies

[azflcowboy]

Good Day, the past 2 avian vets warned me to watch for black on the feathers of eckies. They say it shows a vitamin deficiency.
?Does anyone have input concerning this advice.
I am learning that sometimes we on the forum know a little bit more about eckies then the vet.
I noticed almost all the feathers on Moses are green but some of the feathers are dark and the the majority ofthe feather is bright green as it should be?
Thank you and still looking for a better than good avian vet in north central florida
God Bless
Larry azflcowboy

 

[Talaya]

I’ve not had my Ekkie long, so I cannot say if a vitamin deficiency causes black feathers. But I do know that if they get stressed, when the feather grows, this can show as a fairly distinct black line across the feathers.
Birds also need sunshine the same as we do and I’ve noticed he always looks brighter after getting some sunshine in the garden. A bath and some sun does wonders for their feather condition.
I hope that someone with greater knowledge can help you Re black feathers.

 

[saxguy64]

I'm definitely no expert, but you have to consider timing. Are you talking about feathers growing in black, or turning black after the fact. Two very different things. Dietary issues don't change the color of existing feathers. That's generally an issue with wear and tear: rubbing on cage bars, over preening, petting with oily hands, etc. Those are some common ones. As mentioned above, stress for any number of reasons during the production/growth of new feathers can cause black lines across the feathers, referred to as stress bars.

 

[azflcowboy]

I’ve not had my Ekkie long, so I cannot say if a vitamin deficiency causes black feathers. But I do know that if they get stressed, when the feather grows, this can show as a fairly distinct black line across the feathers.
Birds also need sunshine the same as we do and I’ve noticed he always looks brighter after getting some sunshine in the garden. A bath and some sun does wonders for their feather condition.
I hope that someone with greater knowledge can help you Re black feathers.

Hello Good advice thank you, i should have noted - i do not see any black line on the feather, just a darkened almost black feather close to Moses body (hmmm funny way to put it) the feather is bright green after the dark shadowy feather...i think stress may be the cause as we had a full house right before thanksgiving and normally it is much quieter with just my wife and i who are retired thanks again and still looking for a good avian vet near crystal river and ocala florida

 

[azflcowboy]

I'm definitely no expert, but you have to consider timing. Are you talking about feathers growing in black, or turning black after the fact. Two very different things. Dietary issues don't change the color of existing feathers. That's generally an issue with wear and tear: rubbing on cage bars, over preening, petting with oily hands, etc. Those are some common ones. As mentioned above, stress for any number of reasons during the production/growth of new feathers can cause black lines across the feathers, referred to as stress bars.

Hello Thank you for your advice and comments i do not see a black line on the feather, just a dark area towards Moses body the rest of the feather is bright green..... i need to understand "stress bars" a little more...is that a distinct black line on the feather? and again thank you for helping this old guy out with his 3 year old ecky

 

[SailBoat]

Thank you for your Service for our Country, as I did the same about a year later.

Black Feathers can become a complicated discussion as there are many things that effect how 'we' see their colors and that they use the UV spectrum to display their feathers to other Parrots. Black Feathers commonly occur in our vision as 'No Reflection' i.e. we see no color, and to add to it, we do not see in the UV spectrum.

What causes a normally green feather to be seen as black? Commonly, the feather's surface is damaged and does not reflect a specific color. Common with older, worn feathers.

Stress Lines: This is a very specific condition that occurs as a specific dark gray to black line(s) across the feather. As the name implies it is brought on by Stress. The exact chemical transformation is not clearly understood other than it is not reversible.

As stated above, diet only effects color as part of new growth and more an issue of rate of replacement far more than the color itself. All Parrots can 'throw' an occasional odd color in an odd location. Welcome to the Wonderful World of Parrots.

Avian Medical Care and the Eclectus Species.
The Eclectus family and their uniqueness represents a challenge for non-Avian Specialists as the 'General Parrot Care' approach does not work well and can become dangerous when applied to Eclectus. There are non-Certified Avian Vets that have spent the time to study the specific needs of Eclectus, but they are rare and commonly do so since they own one or more.

 

[azflcowboy]

Thank you for your Service for our Country, as I did the same about a year later.

Black Feathers can become a complicated discussion as there are many things that effect how 'we' see their colors and that they use the UV spectrum to display their feathers to other Parrots. Black Feathers commonly occur in our vision as 'No Reflection' i.e. we see no color, and to add to it, we do not see in the UV spectrum.

What causes a normally green feather to be seen as black? Commonly, the feather's surface is damaged and does not reflect a specific color. Common with older, worn feathers.

Stress Lines: This is a very specific condition that occurs as a specific dark gray to black line(s) across the feather. As the name implies it is brought on by Stress. The exact chemical transformation is not clearly understood other than it is not reversible.

As stated above, diet only effects color as part of new growth and more an issue of rate of replacement far more than the color itself. All Parrots can 'throw' an occasional odd color in an odd location. Welcome to the Wonderful World of Parrots.

Avian Medical Care and the Eclectus Species.
The Eclectus family and their uniqueness represents a challenge for non-Avian Specialists as the 'General Parrot Care' approach does not work well and can become dangerous when applied to Eclectus. There are non-Certified Avian Vets that have spent the time to study the specific needs of Eclectus, but they are rare and commonly do so since they own one or more.

Hello and Thank you for your service
I understand what you advised and i agree
Moses never had stress lines on his feathers and he is usually very calm and he has been around our elderly dog since he was a baby. Moses and our dog will not go to sleep for the night unless the other is in eyesight, which makes it difficult as i try and make sure moses has 10 to 12 hours sleep and the dog and Moses go into our mster bedroom to sleep and the dog tells us we need to go to bed also at 7:30 pm )) so i agree with you about vets so i will keep searching one advice from the forum advised to try the avian vet web page, so i did find 3 avian vets within 20 to 30 miles away thanks again and i am also going to make sure that Moses has at least 2 to 3 hours sunshine as well we live in north-west central florida so the days tend to be mild in the winter and spring thanks again and God Bless
Larry azflcowboy (yes i rode horses (police and cattle in arizona and florida hence the az fl cowboy (even though i am from brooklyn new york they always called me cowboy at work