The basic answer is most birds moult all their feathers once a year. Many species have two moults for at least part of their plumage per year. Especially those
with separate breeding / non breeding. Apart from moult, if it is a water based dye then it would likely wash away before moult. More to the point, if it does not wash out then, as likely the defect is staining, as the bird moults the pattern of new unstained
feathers would become obvious.
The accidental or purposeful staining can happen to different individuals at different times.
Another possibility I thought of is that they have been fed high dosages of foods that promote deposition of red colour, like what is fed to red canaries, to
enhance the genetic change that allows the red colour. That does not explain the almost identical pattern but different colour of the blue stained cockatoo in the link that Paul Taylor sent.
Long ago in a land far away I recall stories, although maybe this is urban myths, of people painting sparrows yellow to attempt to scam buyers that they were
selling canaries.
Philip
From: John Harris [
Sent: Thursday, 20 June, 2019 9:32 AM
To: canberrabirds
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] Me too with Pink Cockatoo
A question, then, to my more knowledgeable colleagues. If the pink cockatoos have been around for at least two years, and IF they have been stained accidentally, how long does it take for moulting to become obvious?
From: Jean Casburn <>
Date: Tuesday, 18 June 2019 at 6:31 pm
To: chatline <>
Subject: [canberrabirds] Me too with Pink Cockatoo
I saw one like Lori’s photograph ages ago but passed it off as an illusion and probably a cross bred from an aviary or somwhere. I think this bird has been around for a long time – at least 2 years, maybe longer.
Jean
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