The Eastern Rosella

[com. Golden Mantled Rosella]

(Platycercus eximius eximius and -cecilae)

The Primary Colour Varieties

NSL Lutino (Recessive Ino)	Recessive
This variety has largely been supplanted by the sex-linked form and there might be doubt that it still exists. In both, melanin is virtually eliminated in the feathers and also body tissue, so that both foreground and background melanin disappear. The black markings are eliminated, and without background melanin blues and greens are also removed. The resultant bird retains only the pscittacin pigments of red and yellow in its plumage and their true distribution is revealed; the eyes are red, the bill and nails are pale, and feet and legs flesh coloured.
Dilute ‘Pastel’ or ‘Isabel’	Recessive
Melanin, both foreground and background, is greatly reduced in the feathers in a somewhat variable manner so that some specimens are noticeably lighter than others. Body tissue is little, if at all, affected and the eyes are normal. The markings are reduced to shades of grey, blues become lighter, and greens more yellow. The names Pastel and Isabel are to be discouraged (or depracated), since they do not adequately describe the gene action. Common in Europe but much less so in Australia.
Black (Melanistic)	Recessive
Melanin production is greatly increased leading to a spreading of the markings producing the overall appearance of a black body contrasting strongly with the red head, chest, and vent. They are described as having a pearling effect of green and purple on the abdomen, suggesting that background melanin is produced and interacts with constructional features already present in this normally yellow area.
Dark-eyed Clear Yellow	Recessive
Present in Europe this is very similar in appearance to the Lutino but eye colour, bill, nails, and feet retain their normal colour. Technically this can be described as a fully leucistic form and ‘clear’ would be a suitable name for the gene, or factor, responsible.

Pied	Dominant
Pieds have been around for some years but whether all are of the same type is probably not known. That present in Australia is said to be dominant, but for some reason not widespread, and usually has white flights and variable amounts of other pied areas. The feet are pink and toe nails white.

White-winged (Pied)	Co-dominant
This symetrically marked pied form is present in Europe and may well be the same as the Australian form above. Double-factor birds show more piedness than those with only a single factor.

SL Lutino (Sex-linked Ino)	Sex-linked recessive
As with the autosomal recessive Ino, melanin is virtually eliminated in both feathers and body tissue so that all black markings, together with blues and greens, disappear. The bird retains only the pscittacin pigments of red and yellow in its plumage; the eyes are red, the bill and nails are pale, and feet and legs flesh coloured. Those breeders fortunate enough to have a high percentage of p. e. cecilae blood in their stock may expect more deeply yellow coloured birds.
Opaline (Red or Ruby)	Sex-linked recessive
This is a conspicuous and striking variety in which there is a variable spread of red psittacin displacing the yellow of the lower body and over the mantle, together with changes to the pattern of melanin markings. A feature common the the antipodean species expressing the opaline gene is the appearance of a broad whitish underwing stripe in adult males, matching that always present in hens.
Cinnamon	Sex-linked recessive
A typical (and correctly named) Cinnamon bird in which melanin black is changed to melanin brown and somewhat diluted, leading also to lighter blues and greens. As is normal with this variety, young birds have a plum coloured eye which darkens with maturity. (Since there is also a sex-linked Lutino it should be possible to combine these varieties to produce a true Lacewing and, because the GMR has markings comparable to those of the budgerigar, these two species should show a similar phenotype.)

Some popular composite varieties

Rubino (Opaline- or Ruby-Ino)	Sex-linked recessive + Sex-linked recessive
Once again an interesting composite variety has been produced by combining two sex-linked varieties (by crossover and recombination) which shows the full extent of the spread of red psittacin pigment at the expense of yellow.

New or doubtful forms

Blue	Recessive
Blues are present in very small numbers in Australia where they very likely derive from wild caught individuals, and in equally small numbers in Europe. These are true Blues with all psittacin yellow and red pigments inhibited.
Parblue	Recessive
A Parblue form is present in small numbers in mainland Europe and perhaps also the UK. Red pigment is reduced to orange and yellows are lighter. Most appear to occur in conjunction with the ino gene as Creminos.
Goldenback	presumed Recessive
This new and very striking variety originated in Europe and is still held by only a few breeders, who are working on its establishment. Melanin is removed from the back and much of the upper wing coverts, leading to the loss of the markings in these areas, but is retained in the flights and tail. An intruiging feature is the presence in males of a white underwing stripe as also seen in the Opaline. [PHOTO]
Yellow-headed	Dominant
Present but not yet common in Australia; much of the red of the head is lost (becomming yellow) in a somewhat patchy manner as the bird reaches maturity.
Par-ino?	both Recessive and Sex-linked
A number of diluted forms have been noted which may turn out to be par-inos (remember that both recessive and sex-linked inos are, or have been, present in the Eastern).

I am grateful to Thierry Duliere for information concerning some of the varieties listed above. Visit Thierry’s Eastern Rosella Webpage where you will find many more photographs:

http://thierry.duliere.free.fr/rosella/

http://birdhobbyist.com/parrotcolour
e-mail: ClveHesford@aol.com

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