It is the Blue mutation of a King Parrot - a mature male. They do occur
in aviculture but are very rare. There have been a few reports of wild
Blue King Parrots as well so while rare it is not unique.
The blue mutation in parrots is a result of the gene that produces the
yellow family pigments in the feathers being inactivated. That leads to
green feathers becoming blue since green feathers are a result of both
blue and yellow in the structure of the feather rather than a green
pigment. Since red is part of the yellow family of pigments controlled
by this gene, its inactivation leaves a white colour where previously
there was red. Hence a blue and white King Parrot.
cheers,
Mike
Sunshine Coast
On 3/12/2013 8:29 PM, Annabel Ashworth wrote:
I gather you were unable to see the photo of the King Parrot I was asking
about. If any one would like to see it, the photo os on the home page of our
club's website.
Go to
www.tamworthbirdwatchers.com
Not sure if the link is working, but that is the address anyway.
Cheers
Annabel
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