branches and gnarled trunks. Nowadays not all Lineolated Parakeets
are simply green any more. During the last years several different colour variants emerge. Probably the most prominent colour mutations are those of the green and turquoise colour lines. A so-called ‘dark factor’ leads to dark green (D green) Linnies when present once, and to olive green (DD green) when present twice in green birds. The same is true for turquoise birds which are not of pure blue colour because there is still some yellow colour left. Therefore the plumage is more of a green-bluish colour which becomes cobalt blue (D turquoise) with one, and dark grey - called mauve - (DD turquoise) with two dark factors. ‘Inos’ look like Linnies from another
planet. Due to the loss of all melanin (which gives the feather its blue and black colour) ‘Lutinos’ show a sun yellow plumage with no black markings, the down is white and the eyes are red. Combined with the turquoise colour mutation the parakeets appear in an angelic cream-white colour and are therefore called ‘Creaminos’. Another colour mutation arose: the
greywing factors. Like the dark factor they can show up as one or two factors, leading to lighter plumage colours or even to pastel-coloured parakeets. All these mutations can be combined – at least to a certain extent – and therefore represent an almost endless chart of
40 BIRD SCENE
colour in the Lineolated Parakeets. It’s also the number of these mutations that make it very difficult, if not impossible, to draw conclusions from the plumage concerning the gender of the birds. There are many approaches like a bluish shimmer on the head of a female Linnie, as well as less black markings especially on the elbow and the two middle navigational feathers. But whatever you heard, most of these methods turned out to be extremely error- prone. It probably would be more accurate to make a guess. Sometimes it works properly to keep two hens or two cocks. The first usually is easier, but may lead to constant egg-laying. The combination of two mature males – however – will cause problems if they are both dominant. Fights and aggressions might be the result. So, if you want to be sure: let the sex of your parakeets be determined by DNA analysis.
Chow down When kept properly Lineolated Parakeets can reach an age of 13 or 14 years. In addition to a stimulating environment, a relatively high air humidity and nice company, one major basis for a long, healthy parakeet life is of course a varied nutrition. Because Linnies love eating and they eat a lot they need a low-calorie diet which is rich in greens. If fed too fatty and rich food they would become portly, and sooner or later also sick.
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