I have tried to make this explanation of lineolated parakeet color genetics as simplified and straightforward as possible. If you'd like a slightly more technical discussion, visit THIS SITE which also has a great deal of good information on other linnie topics.

I have only included relatively commonly available colors. A few other colors such as cinnamon and pied exist, but only in small numbers and breeders have been unable to "set" these mutations so that they can be bred in sufficient numbers for the pet market. Relatively commonly available colors include green, dark green, olive, lutino, turquoise, cobalt, mauve (sometimes called slate), and creamino, plus "edged" or dilute birds, sometimes also called silver or golden linnies. Some of these may be more difficult to come by than others.

If you are wondering why it's important to study linnie genetics - this information is really only for interest's sake unless you plan to breed your birds. If you do plan to breed, and you do not have a good grasp of color genetics, you may get very unexpected results from your breeding, and possibly be disappointed. For example, you can sometimes get different results from two pairs of birds that have the same colors (eg. one cobalt parent and one edged), if the female and male colors are reversed in the two pairs!

So let us move on to our genetics lesson!

Click on the title bars to view each topic.

At the most basic level, you can have either a green linnie, or a turquoise linnie. In other bird species, like the budgies, we'd say that you can have either a green bird or a blue bird, because the mutation that resulted in blue budgies stips *all* of the yellow color from the bird, resulting in a true blue. In linnies however, the mutation that first produced "blue" birds only reduces the amount of yellow but does not remove it entirely. Thus, there are no "true" blue linnies. Instead, we have turquoise!

All colors of lineolated parakeets are simply variations on either green or turquoise!

Green series colors: green, dark green, olive, lutino, green edged, dark green edged, and olive edged.

Turquoise series colors: turquoise, cobalt, slate, creamino, turquoise edged, cobalt edged, and slate edged.

Each lineolated parakeet has two genes that determine whether the bird appears to be green or turquoise series. Green is dominant, and turquoise is recessive. That means that if one of a bird's two genes are green, they will appear to be a green series bird. Even if the second gene is turquoise, the green gene dominates the turquoise gene so that you cannot see it.

Thus, a green bird may be "carrying" a turquoise gene, unseen, that can be passed on to their chicks. This is what a "split" refers to. If a bird is "green split to turquoise", often written as "green/turquoise" it simply means that they are a green series bird carrying a hidden turquoise gene.

A turquise series bird cannot be split to green, because if a bird has one green gene, they will be green! Thus you know that your turquoise or cobalt bird, for example, cannot give you green chicks unless the other parent is a green series bird.

The next color factor we will look at is "dark". Dark works a little bit differently than the green/turquoise genes, because the dark factor is not a simple recessive. Instead, the dark factor mixes with the green or turquoise color. That means that if your bird has one or more dark factors, you will know it because of the bird's visible color. A dark factor cannot hide! So your bird cannot pass a dark factor to their chicks unless the dark factor is visible on the bird.

In addition, the dark factors "pile up". That means that if your bird has two dark factors, they will be visibly different than a bird with just one dark factor.

Both male and female birds can each have up to two dark factors. sf = single factor, df = double factor

Green + Dark series linnies: (sf) dark green, (df) olive

Turquoise + Dark series linnies: (sf) cobalt, (df) slate

The dilute factor is a little bit different in that this is a "sex linked" factor. This just means that instead of the linnie's "regular" genes, the dilute factor is carried on the genes that determine their sex. In mammals, the sex of an animal is determined by the x and y chromosomes. Females have two x chromosomes and males have one x and one y chromosome.

Birds are similar, but a little different! The sex chromosomes in birds are "w" and "z". And it is the MALE bird that has two "z" chromosomes, and the female who has one "z" and one "w" chromosome!

Because one sex has only one "z" chromosome and the other sex has two, the genetics works a little differently between the two sexes of linnies.

The dilute factor is carried on the "z" chromosome. And, like the dark factor, the dilute factor "piles up". But, it can only "pile up" in male birds, because female birds only have a single "z" chromosome.

Therefore, if a male linnie has one dilute factor, the color will be lighter than in normal linnies, including the dark barring on their feathers, which takes on a "golden" color in green series birds and a "silvery" color in turquoise series birds (which is why edged birds are sometimes called "silver" or "golden", though the correct term is "edged"). If a male linnie has two dilute factors, the color will be lighter still, and the barring ("edging") will be very pale or there may be no visible edging.

If a female linnie has even one dilute factor, they will resemble the double factor males - again, because they only have one place to carry the edged factor, while male linnie have two places.

Note that there is always variation within the colors. Some may be darker, some lighter. Some single factors may have very pale edging, some doubles may have darker edging. Therefore even a hen may show some edging on her feathers.

A bird can have BOTH: one or more dark factors AND: one or more dilute factors, so there can be both normal edged birds AND "dark" edged birds, resulting in:

Green series dilute linnies: green edged, dark green edged, olive edged

Turquoise series dilute linnies: turquoise edged, cobalt edged, slate edged

If you wish to read more on the edged variation, including the origins and additional images, there is an excellent article HERE

The "ino" factor is sex-linked, just like the dilute factor. However, it is not "co-dominant" like the dilute factor; it does not "pile up". Rather, it acts just like the green and turquise varieties do. Therefore, a male lineolated parakeet needs two "ino" genes to appear as an "ino" linnie, whereas the female needs only one "ino" gene to appear as an "ino" linnie. This is why more lutinos and creaminos tend to be female than male!

The "ino" factor masks the dark and dilute factors, so there are no "dark" or "dilute" looking "inos", though there is a natural color range of paler to darker plumage in these birds.

"Ino Factor" green linnie: Lutino - a yellow bird with zero visible barred markings

"Ino Factor" turquoise linnie: Creamino - a creamy/yellow-white bird with zero visible barred marking

Because "ino" is recessive, and a male has two chromosomes to carry this factor on, a male linnie can be split to "ino". That is, he can appear as a green or turquoise series bird, but be "hiding" an "ino" factor that he can pass on to his chicks. A male bird can be split to both turquoise AND "ino" at the same time, since these are separate factors carried in separate locations!

A female linnie only has one chromosome to carry the "ino" factor on, therefore if she has a single "ino" factor she will appear as an "ino" bird. Thus she cannot be split to, or "hide" an ino gene to pass on to her chicks.

In other species like the budgie, pure white birds are possible. However, just as there are no true blue lineolated parakeets, there are no true white/albino linnies - and for the same reason. Because the yellow pigment is only reduced, not eliminated, we have "creaminos", creamy-colored birds, instead of "albinos", truly white birds.

- There are two basic varieties of linnie, green and turquoise. All other linnie colors are variations on these two varieties.

- The "dark factor" is carried on a linnie's normal chromosomes, and each bird can have up to two dark factors. Dark factor is additive, or "co-dominant", so a bird with one dark factor will appear different to a bird with two dark factors. Dark factors cannot be hidden in a bird's genetics, if a bird has a dark factor it will always show.

Dark factor linnie colors: (sf) dark green, (df)olive, (sf)cobalt, and (df) slate

- The "dilute factor" is carried on a lineolated parakeet's sex chromosomes, with male birds able to have two dilute factors and female birds only able to have one dilute factor. Dilute factor is additive or "co-dominant", meaning that a double factor bird will be paler than a single factor bird, *except* in female linnies, since a female has only one "z" chromosome as opposed to the male's two "z" chromosomes, to carry the dilute factor on. Thus, a female linnie with one dilute factor looks just the same as a male linnie with two dilute factors.

Dilute factor linnie colors: green edged, dark green edged, olive edged, turquoise edged, cobalt edged, slate edged - with two "gradations" of dilution available in male linnies and only the appearance of the full dilutes available in female linnies.

- The "ino factor" is a sex-linked, recessive factor. Thus, a male linnie needs two "ino" factors to appear as an "ino" coloration, with single factor birds appearing as regular green or turquoise series linnies, but carrying an "ino" factor that can be passed on to their chicks. Female linnies can only ever have one "ino" factor since they only have one "z" chromosome to carry it on, and thus any female linnie that inherits an "ino" factor will have the appearance of an "ino" bird; a green or turquoise female bird cannot be split to "ino" - she cannot hide an "ino" factor to pass on to her chicks.