Lady Gouldian Finch, Dilute gouldian, yellow backed gouldian

Identifying the Baby Dilute Male Gouldian

The youngest sister, Jessie, cares for our Gouldian aviary. She is fascinated by the eggs, by the babies, by the pairs of adults and is very meticulous about their care. Here is her observation of how to tell which baby is a dilute at a very young age. The below picture is a clutch of Gouldians in the pin feather stage. There are 2 yellow backs, 2 normal green backs and one dilute.

Look closely at the primary feathers of the baby between the 2 yellow backs. See how they are tipped in white? This will be a male dilute. Dilutes are the result of a normal green backed Gouldian carrying a yellow backed gene (the bird is "split" to yellow back). The yellow back gene is sex linked so only males can carry this gene. Thus, female Gouldians cannot be dilutes.

The below 2 pictures show a normal green backed Gouldian Finch and a Dilute Gouldian Finch for comparison.

Here is an adult dilute male Gouldian Finch for you to see. The male is in the back of a yellow backed Gouldian hen.

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