Bouvreuil Ponceau – Pastel

Description:

Discovered in Belgium in 1974, it has since won over many breeders. It is established in both the peony (the origin of the mutation) and the ponceau varieties. In France, a few breeders have adopted it, but they are not yet numerous.
Pastel female:
Head and chin: the glossy black is reduced to a greyish-brown; some birds have patches of diluted brown in the crown. Back feathers, primary and secondary coverts: the dark brown is replaced by a pastel brown. Flight feathers: reduction in black. Tail feathers: a pastel hue similar to that of the wing flight feathers, though these may be darker depending on the individual. Rump and belly: white. Breast: pigmentation similar to that of the back. Legs and beak lighter than in the wild form.
The pastel mutation is sex-linked and recessive. The best specimens are produced from a split pastel male crossed with a pastel female.
The bird shown in the photograph, although not a show bird as it has an irregularly distributed melanin dilution, is a good example of the pastel mutation.
It appears that, despite the passing of the years, the pastel mutation has not yet been stabilised. Indeed, it is possible to find several pastel chicks in the same brood exhibiting varying degrees of dilution.
Similarly, despite increasingly careful selection, the pastel factor is not always uniform across the entire bird. Variations are particularly noticeable on the flight feathers and tail feathers.
Pastel male:
In my view, the pastel male has a less striking colouration. The head and chin are diluted (the glossy black has disappeared). Back feathers: the bluish-grey back is also less glossy, giving the bird a more greyish appearance.
On the flight feathers and tail feathers, the reduction in black varies to a greater or lesser extent (depending on the individual). The breast and part of the underparts have retained the reddish-pink colour of the wild-type.
The main difficulty with this mutation is obtaining individuals that are uniformly diluted.

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