Galah x cockatiel is the most useless hybrid ever imagined. It looks and acts like a cockatiel with a stubby crest and orange chest colour. A pure cockatiel is more attractive and a pure galah has a better temperament. There is no point to it other than for people to make money off the bizarre... and that I disagree with highly.
I only see the sale of pet hybrids as useful when your combination makes an improvement. For example, a galah x corella or galah x major gives you a more interesting looking bird than a pure galah and a more toned down temperament then the species its crossed with. They are fabulous pets.
I don't know why anyone would want to cross an african grey with anything, it wouldn't be an improvement on the species.
I actually think the galatiel is kind of cute!!! I actually prefer the colors of these compared to the "washed out" galah x white too hybrids. (although, some of those are rather cute! Or the strikingly orange galah hybrids) But, there are at least 3 of these (galatiel) hybrids in existence now.
Flickr: Search Hybrid Parrots
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...98145133547155&type=1&relevant_count=1&ref=nf
Above FB link should work. If it doesn't, here's a direct link to the image.
https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/526225_307302986045413_494381704_n.jpg
I'm actually surprised I haven't heard of galatiels outside of Australia, considering how much hype the first one brought about.
as long as we don't create
stupid (no offense to anyone who thinks they're cute or has one) and/or unhealthy breeds like bulldogs who go blind without eye surgery, or who cant have babies without a caesarian and ridiculous things like munchkin cats. [though their kittens are adorable] dogs and cats are different i know, they're hugely domesticated by comparison and we basically created them as they are now. but seriously some would be just completely useless in the wild.
Id prefer to keep breeds as they are (probably wont ever be a breeder anyway), but i guess my point it that just as much change in a species can occur through selective breeding as through hybridization. so i guess as long as there is a good sized 'normal' population still in captivity in case breeding programs and such are needed, and it doesn't result in bad or unhealthy offspring i don't have too much against it.
Species, not breeds. But I agree - I'd rather see *healthy* hybrids rather than hybrids who have shortened lifespans, birth defects, etc. Subspecies hybrids and hybrids between two closely related species (i.e. Aratinga hybrids, Pyrrhura hybrids, Poicephalus hybrids, Amazona hybrids and White Cockatoo [couple different generas] hybrids) are all probably pretty healthy... except macaw hybrids on the other hand generally don't go past the 4th or 5th generation without infertility and/or birth defects; go figure!
I wouldn't want to be a breeder either, I'm more interested in keeping parrots as pets. But it is interesting. I agree completely with Oowl.
MonicaMc, those were some interesting Poicephalus hybrids, and funny about the subspecies of senegals, because our sennie has some different variations of orange and yellow in his vest.
Thingamagigs, as far as I know they didn't make any money out of the Galahtiel or sold it, I think they just intended to keep it as a family pet.
Thanks everyone for the replies!
I find it ironic, and sad, how there can be so many anti-hybrid people out there that may own birds with known subspecies, and the possibility of said bird(s) to potentially be a hybrid. Unless you can tract down the birds origins back to the wild caught birds, and knowing where these birds came from, you might have a hybrid...
The *only* subspecies that people actually care about are eclectus subspecies, and to a lesser amount, amazon subspecies. It's a big no-no to hybridize eclectus, but it's practically overlooked in almost all other species. This makes absolutely no sense to me! The last time I saw breeders actually care about the different subspecies in various parrots was about 10-12 years ago. Between now and then, I don't know what happened... maybe people decided to stop caring?
My mitred conure is one such species as well. There's one nominate species and two subspecies. I know for a fact which subspecies he is (Northern Mitred Conure) because his parents are wild caught imports and he shows no traces of the other two subspecies. I haven't actually seen his parents in person, since he came to me as a second hand bird over 5 years ago and he'll be 19 this year. His breeder only kept his parents for one clutch prior to giving/selling the pair to a friend of hers.
That said, a "long time knowledgeable breeder" told me he's a hybrid and that he has cherry head in him. I used to own a cherry head, and Charlie, my mitred, was given to me as a cherry head! But I've studied the red headed species well enough to know the difference! Said breeder has a pair of cherry heads... I really wonder if they are cherry heads, hybrids or a different species altogether.
I'm not a fan of hybridization when the human hand has something to do with it, accross species and especially if it's done because a breeder "felt like trying it out".
There is no real need for it.
As for Senegals subspecies having already been mixed, the same is true with Meyer's. A lot of it, I think, has to do with people being unable to properly identify the different subspecies in the first place or not thinking that there was any real difference to begin with.
If breeders can't even tell the difference between species, I don't see how we can expect them to tell the difference between subspecies... When my cherry head was given to me, the previous owner didn't know if he was a "red masked" or "mit-red" (my-turd!

) conure. Had to do a lot of research to find out for sure, since information back then was highly limited. And, as mentioned, Charlie was given to me as a cherry head. If I didn't do my research (previously) on the different red head species, I probably would have taken it at face value and believed he was in fact a cherry head. His foster parents were surprised to learn he wasn't a cherry head, and thus not related, in any way, to the wild flock of cherry heads (and hybrids) in San Francisco.
Unfortunately, I've ran across a few breeders who take things at face value... i.e. being told a mitred conure is a cherry head and breeding the mitred to a cherry head (don't mind the fact that they are different sizes, slightly different colors and different amounts of red on their bodies - oh, and lets not forget, cherry heads are born 100% green and mitreds are born with a small amount of red to the forehead!) or gold caps being sold as sun conures or jendays. This is not responsible breeding... And to say it bugs me, is putting it lightly! LOL