Face Feathers

[tlfisher]

I noticed that Wylie is growing orange feathers on her face in places where she had black feathers. There are about 4-5 that have changed color with her last molt. Is this common or should I be adding something to her diet or take her to a vet?

Thanks,
Tracey

 

[JerseyWendy]

I will tentatively say don't worry. How is her overall plumage? Is she brightly colored? If so, then don't worry if some of her facial stubs change to orange.

 

[Alwese]

It is funny how sometimes odd colored feathers appear. My Catalina Doogie at times has far more orange feathers in the area at the top of his beak. My Scarlet will sometimes have green feathers appear on the back of his head and at other times there will only be red. Barbara Gould said she had vets that were fooled into believing that there were more subspecies of Scarlets that were closer to orange. The truth is that the feather color red will actually fade in bright sun!! The color red can be like that on just about anything. You might be able to see the orange feathers near the beak in this picture: Click to enlarge

 

[horsesculpter]

Sunny is five this summer and I am noticing that above the small band of orange, (about a half inch deep) across the top of her beak a few orange feathers are dotting her forehead. She also has a few tiny orange feathers on her face in with the black. I never noticed these before and think they are new. Maybe because she is maturing?

 

[tlfisher]

Wylie's colors are still bright and vibrant. She does love to go outside on Sunny days.

 

[tlfisher]

Ok. I am going to try that again. I seem to have gotten a link rather then a picture of Wylie. In this picture you can see the red face feathers near her nares. She seems to be getting more red around her nares too. She is 17 so age could be a factor.




Thanks Everyone for your responses. Everyone has been so nice about answering my questions as I am a new fid parent. I have gotten past her biting and am bonding well with her now that I am not afraid to get bit everytime I handle her.

 

[Mayden]

Ok. I am going to try that again. I seem to have gotten a link rather then a picture of Wylie. In this picture you can see the red face feathers near her nares. She seems to be getting more red around her nares too. She is 17 so age could be a factor.

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Thanks Everyone for your responses. Everyone has been so nice about answering my questions as I am a new fid parent. I have gotten past her biting and am bonding well with her now that I am not afraid to get bit everytime I handle her.

Glad things are getting better. Also, just in case it's not new feathers growing, is there any chance that he could be rubbing his face on coloured perches or toys? My albino looks like she's got blue feathers just above her nare because she rubs herself against her blue perch

 

[Alwese]

Nice pictures on your page. Wylie certainly has a bumper crop of the orange feathers around the nares. My Doogie only has a few, but their is a lot of variation in the coloring of Catalinas, especially in the light or darkness of the beak. Doogie was my first macaw and was a rehome. I got him at 4 y.o. and now he will be 20 in a couple days. When I got him he bonded to my wife and I was not able to handle him for two years. Now we are best buds and we wrestle nightly on the rug without me getting damaged. He is very powerful though and can even open black walnuts Click picture to enlarge and see his orange nare feathers are very few

 

[tlfisher]

She has a wood perch and a blue and green perch on the play gym that Jeff built for her. She does have alot of blocks with different colors, but she chews them to splinters.

She was rehomed with Jeff about a year and a half ago. They both moved in with me in May. She was biting me bad at first, but I have learned her warning signs and she knows I am no longer afraid of her. Now she loves to cuddle in my arm and does like to play, but has only mouthed me since I have learned to push forward if she bites and to not do a biting dance to give her entertainment. I just firmly state NO Bad bird and put her on the ground. I have discovered she does mot like to do tricks, but loves to talk and is comfortable sharing what she knows. She has even learned the names of the kids and the dog. She will scold the dog for barking... it is so funny to hear since she is making more noise then the dog...lol. What I find most amazing is she is mimicking my daughters voice. Several times I think my daughter wants my help to find Wylie laughing that she got me again. It is awesome to hear her laughing and talking so much.