parakeet with split tail feathers

[mjroach]

I have a parakeet who I got from a small hobby breeder, who bought her from someone else for breeding purposes because she had a "swallow tail" I looked this up and havent found anything showing it to be a common mutation. Is this just an individual mutation? or is it something that pops up every once in awhile?

 

[Ratzy]

Ummm... that is NOT a mutation. The poor thing has just lost the main part of the tail and the underneath tail feathers are showing. The new main tail feather will grow back during the next moult. She is too young to breed with.

 

[mjroach]

yes she is only about 7 months old, I dont breed, I got her because she was the only hand raised parakeet I could find in my area. And actually, if you could see undernearth, the tail feathers grow in two different directions, with all layers of tail feathers growing in one of two directions. I have owned Budgies before but they were all normal feathered.

 

[Ratzy]

See the underneath feathers in that pic? They grow in two different directions but are mostly held back in. Your bird has lost the main tail feather. You cannot call ANYTHING a mutation before you have bred it and produced more. I had a budgie lose the main tail at a young age. It grew back in the next moult. Sometimes it will not grow back ( contradicting my above words ) because the folacle has been damaged.