You must have seen Albino budgies or kept them as a pet in your home but you might not know that white is not their real color. Naturally, Budgies have one color that is green and yellow with black markings.
Sometime in the back 1900s breeders started mutating budgies and since then different mutations of the bird are available for pet lovers. One of the specie of parakeet got the name Albino due to the lack of melanin in their body.
You might wonder what this melanin has to do with the white color of the parakeet. Melanin is a substance in the body that produces pigmentation on hair, eyes, and skin. Deficiency of this causes white or yellow color all over.
Albino parakeet has red eyes because of the presence of “INO” gene that impacts the color of their eyes. Albino budgies are blue budgies which is why it turns white in color and all green budgies with ino-gene turn yellow in color which is called lutino.
Difference Between Normal And Albino Budgie?
These are some differences between a normal budgie and an Albino budgie which are,
| ALBINO BUDGIE | NORMAL BUDGIE |
| Albino budgies have white color without any markings because of melanin deficiency. | Normal budgies have melanin and that is why they have color pigmentation on the body and feathers. |
| Albino budgies have red eyes | Normal budgies have a blackeye |
| Albino budgies have pink cere and feet | Normal budgies have dark or light blue cere and dark feet |
| Albino Budgies have white cheeks | Normal budgies have dark blue cheeks |
Can Albino Budgies Breed With Normal Budgies?
Yes, you can make a pair of albino budgies with any other budgie and they can breed as they are the same specie of parrot but with a different gene.
Remember Albino parakeets are rare and If you are planning to make a pair of them with a normal budgie then this couple’s offspring will carry the Ino genetics.
Offspring Characteristics
You can pair Albino with any normal blue budgie because they both will carry a blue gene.
Eyes
The offspring of Albino and blue gene parakeets will have black eyes and it will not be visible if the chicks are carrying the ino gene or not.
Male / Female
The ratio of male and female birds will be dependent upon the distribution of Z and W chromosomes.
Markings
Offspring will carry the normal budgie pigmentation but they all will be Splits ( carrying ino gene) of Albino Budgie.
You can get normal and Albino parakeets by pairing these chicks with any other Albino however all the normal ones will be split as mentioned above.
How do you Make an Albino Budgie?
| Pairing | Offspring Results |
| Albino + Albino Budgie | You will get all Albino chicks |
| Albino + Normal Budgie | You will get Normal blackeye budgie males and females will be splits of albino Budgie |
| Albino + Black eye budgie split of Albino | You will get Albino and split budgies. The chance of getting Albinos is higher |
| Black eye budgie split of Albino + Black eye budgie split of Albino | You will get Albino and split budgies. The chance of getting Albinos is lower |
How Common are Albino Budgies?
In comparison with normal, Albino budgies are less than one percent of the total population of parakeets.
Albino budgies are rare because of the redeye and they are not common, you have to pay some extra cost for adopting Albinos because they are very expensive.
Normal budgies can cost you 25$ to 30$ whereas Albino can cost you around 300$ to 400$.
If you wish to own an Albino budgie with a limited budget you can follow the mutation process which I mentioned earlier.
Are Albino Budgies females?
Most people identify budgie’s gender with the color of cere as normal budgie cere color differs in both genders while in Albinos it’s the same but with a slight difference and you can not clearly distinguish it.
This is why most pet owners get confused in distinguishing Albino budgie’s gender. Truth is, not all Albino parakeets are females, you can find albino budgies in both gender males and females.
However, it is an observation that the proportion of females is higher in Albino parakeets because of the genetic process.
Are Albino Budgies Healthy?
No study or research has stated about their health that they are less healthy. I have also kept albino budgies and from my experience of over 14 years. I have not seen any health differences from the normal budgies.
Albino budgies are prone to the same diseases and infections that a normal budgie is.
Do Albino Birds Have a Bad Eyesight?
it is a misconception about the eyesight of albino budgies that they are blind or have weak sight. This concept has been derived from Albinos having red eyes. Always remember, the color of their eyes is due to the gene they carry and it is not a disease.
Red eye disease is completely different in birds than in Albinos. It is caused by an infection called avian conjunctivitis which can make the bird go completely blind if not treated.
