Lutino lovebird?

Isaacsmom

New member
Aug 18, 2013
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A woman who claimed she is a lovebird breeder told me one of my babies is a Lutino because it was born with red eyes. Is this true? Also she said because neither parent was a Lutino the baby has to be a female. Is true also? tried to look it up but was very confused . I don't really care what sex it is as long as it grows up to be healthy but it would be nice to know.
 

Pajarita

Banned
Banned
Jul 11, 2013
446
1
It's true about the red eyes of the lutino babies and it is true that, certain parents would only produce lutino hens (the mutation is sex-linked) but it depends on the parents' genetics so, yes, both things can be true.
 

MarciaLove

New member
Jan 4, 2012
1,274
1
USA Georgia
Parrots
Sugar the Blue Crown Conure♂, Merlin the Camelot Macaw♂
could be Lutino, Cremino with red eyes and if they arent totally bright red could be an American Cinnamon.
 

MonicaMc

Well-known member
Sep 12, 2012
7,960
Media
2
43
Parrots
Mitred Conure - Charlie 1994;
Cockatiel - Casey 2001;
Wild Caught ARN - Sylphie 2013
Creamino is lutino + par-blue. (for clarification)

Red eyes could indicate another mutation as well, as already stated. (i.e. cinnamon or fallow - although cinnamon eyes darken with age)

Parrots have ZW chromosomes (as opposed to humans that are XY). Males are ZZ and females are ZW. Sex-linked mutations can only be carried on the Z chromosome and not the W chromosome.

If a male has the lutino gene on one Z chromosome but not the other, he is considered "split" for the mutation. If he has the lutino gene on both chromosomes, then he is a visual lutino. Males can transfer this mutation to male or female offspring.

In hens, if they have the lutino gene, they are automatically visual as there aren't any other genes to "hide" the lutino gene from being visual. Females can only transfer this mutation to their male offspring, since hens will get the W chromosome from their mother and the Z chromosome from their father.

In short, if a bird inherits the lutino gene visually from it's father but the hen doesn't carry the mutation, you know that the offspring is automatically female!


That may be more confusing an explanation than you asked for!


Human males are XY and females are XX. In parrots, it's the opposite. (reptiles also have the ZW chromosomes).
 

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