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History of the Clearwing

What Is A Clearwing? Clearwing Matings and Expectations

History Of The Clearwing.

The origin of the Clearwing goes back many years but before I start to explain, the following bears some light on the matter. In the Budgerigar Bulletin No.24 of March 1933, Dr. Merrilees gave some interesting information on Budgerigar culture in Australia. In his article Dr. Merrilees said that prior to the ban some years before on importing and exporting birds from Australia, practically all the Australian aviaries were stocked with birds of Japanese origin. Some few birds had since entered Australia smuggled in by Asiatics. Strangely enough most of the Japanese birds came from Great Britain in the first place.

The first mention of Clearwing being a possibility appeared in the Budgerigar Bulletin No. 25 of June, 1933, on information from the Budgerigar Society of Victoria, Australia. Greywings having dark (full) body colour and grey wings were mentioned and it was thought that birds with similar dark body colour and very light wings could be produced from these birds.

In the Budgerigar Bulletin No. 29 of March, 1934, Mr S.E. Terrill of Adelaide quoted whilst writing about "Greywings" saying that some of the most handsome birds being those that are least like Greywings - such birds having very light wings and brilliant deep body colour.

From the June Bulletin No. 30 of 1934, comes some very interesting information, the arrival in England of a pair of Royal (Australs) Blues as a gift from Australia to the late King George V. These were as far as I know the very first examples of birds having a Clearwing character to come to this country. His late Majesty was at that time Patron of the Budgerigar Society and bred Budgerigars in many colours at Sandringham. In the same Bulletin came the first positive facts of the Clearwings. A further article from Mr. Terrill quoted the existence of both Clearwings and Full Body Coloured Greywings showing that both kinds were separate. In the following Bulletin, Mr. A. Bowden reports that some thirtyeight Yellow-wings and Whitewings had been bred in the Sydney area.

Capt. R.C. Dettman of Victoria reported that he had bred Yellow-wings in three body shades. In Bulletin No. 34 of June 1935, Mr. Terrill, writing about "Classification and Nomenclature of Budgerigars", called the birds with pale (light) markings Australs and those with the grey wing markings Grey-wing Australs. A further name for the Blue series was Royal Blues and the Green series Jades. J.S. Thorneman of Melbourne gives credit to Mr. H. Pier for developing Yellow-wings and Whitewings from the Austral character.

Mr. F. S. Elliott, writing in Budgerigar Bulletin No. 37 of 1936, gave the information that although there was a widespread belief that Clearwings were the result of selective breeding from deeply suffused Yellows and Whites, it was a positive fact that their colouration was due to a separate mutation. Later that year, Mr. E. Walker of Sydney, brought living examples of Yellow-wings and Whitewings to England for Bernard Mott of Birmingham. I saw these birds and they were certainly quite distinct from the best suffused birds we had in this country. I had the opportunity of talking with Mr. Walker about Clearwings and he seemed to think they were the result of selective breeding. Actually I think this was quite true but it was selective breeding from a new mutation, i.e. the Clearwing and not from ordinary deeply suffused Whites and Yellows.

It was not until June Bulletin of 1937 that Mr. R.B. Browne of New South Wales put forward the first full explanation of the Clearwings showing they were due to a further mutation of the Greywing character making the series Greywing, Clearwing, Yellow (White). Later this was supported by Breeding results both in Australia and in this country. Professor H. Steiner of Zurich, Dr. H. Duncker of Bremen and Professor F.A.E. Crewe of Edinburgh, all agreed fully on the Clearwing being a new mutation.

The first Clearwings to be exhibited at a large show were seen at the Bird Fancy Exhibition 1937 where they created quite a sensation. Clearwings both Yellow-wings and Whitewings were known to have been bred that year by Bernard Mott, R.J. Watts, H. Tod Boyd, Scott and Campkin, C.H. Rogers and others. The Clearwing birds originally imported varied considerably in purity of wing and depth of body colour. Some were paired together and others crossed with our own suffused Yellows and Whites and from both kinds of matings some really good coloured birds with almost pure white or pure yellow wings resulted.

Further matings were made with exhibition Light Yellows (Buttercups) but in the second generation from such crosses the resulting Clearwings showed good wing colour but less depth of body. The improvement in type and substance with the Clearwings continued up until the outbreak of World War II. It is interesting to note that up to this date Clearwings were classed together with Whites of deep suffusion and most classes at shows contained birds of each variety. Yellow-wings on the other hand were consigned to the Any Other Colour classes.

The 1939/45 period was a bad one for Budgerigars and stocks of all colours were considerably depleted and after the War, Clearings were in very short supply. At the Horticultural Hall Show in 1946, Frank Waite won a mixed Clearwing and White of deep suffusion class with Whitewing Cobalts. During the next few years the keeping and breeding of Budgerigars of all colours gradually increased until in the nineteen fifties and sixties their breeding was booming once again with many more fanciers now having Clearwings. Few of these birds were of the desired colours but breeders were making a sustained effort to improve both Yellow-wings and Whitewings.

C. H. Rogers.

What is a Clearwing?

The Clearwing name embraces the Yellow-wing green and the White-wing Blue series, with the standard for the individual colours laid down by the Budgerigar Society as follows:

BUDGERIGAR SOCIETY COLOUR STANDARD - Yellow-wing

Yellow-wing Light Green – All Yellow-wings should be exhibited in the Yellow-wing class.
General body colour: rump, breast, flanks and underparts; light green of an even depth    of colour throughout, not less than 90% of the normal variety in depth and intensity.  
Mask: buttercup yellow, with the throat spots only very faintly visible; greyish in colour.  The buttercup yellow of the mask extending over the frontal and crown, to merge with the faintly visible undulations at the back of the head.  The frontal and crown should be clear and free from all markings. 
Markings: on cheeks, back of head and neck faintly visible on a buttercup yellow ground, all markings should be free from any intrusion of body colour.Cere: blue in cocks, brown in hens. 
Eyes:
black with a white iris.
Cheek patches:
violet.
Wings:
buttercup yellow, free from all markings.
Primary wing flights
: whitish yellow.
Primary tail feathers: blue.
Feet and legs: blue/grey.

Yellow-wing Dark Green
As the Yellow-wing Light Green but not less than 90% of the dark green body colour
Primary tail feathers: darker in proportion.

Yellow-wing Olive Green As the Yellow-wing Light Green but not less than 90% of the olive green body colour.
Primary tail feathers: darker in proportion.

Yellow-wing Grey Green
General body colour: rump, breast, flanks and underparts; grey green of an even depth    of colour throughout, not less than 90% of the normal variety in depth and intensity.  
Mask: buttercup yellow, with the throat spots only very faintly visible; greyish white in colour.  The buttercup yellow of the mask extending over the frontal and crown, to merge with the faintly visible undulations at the back of the head.  The frontal and crown should be clear and free from all markings.
Markings: on cheeks, back of head and neck faintly visible on a buttercup yellow ground, all markings should be free from any intrusion of body colour.
Cere: blue in cocks, brown in hens.
 Eyes: black with a white iris.
Cheek patches: grey.
Wings: buttercup yellow, free from all markings.
Primary wing flights: whitish yellow.
Primary tail feathers: grey.
Feet and legs: blue/grey.

(Note: there are light, medium and dark shades of Yellow-wing Grey Green. The shade of the cheek patches may change according to the shade of the body colour).

BUDGERIGAR SOCIETY COLOUR STANDARD - Whitewing

Whitewing Skyblue – All Whitewings should be exhibited in the Whitewing class.
General body colour:
rump, breast, flanks and underparts; skyblue of an even depth of colour throughout, not less than 90% of the normal variety in depth and intensity. 
Mask:
white, with the throat spots only very faintly visible; greyish white in colour. The  white of the mask extending over the frontal and crown, to merge with the faintly visible undulations at the back of the head. The frontal and crown should be clear and free from all markings.
Markings:
on cheeks, back of head and neck faintly visible on a white ground, all markings should be free from any intrusion of body colour.
Cere: blue in cocks, brown in hens.
Eyes: black with a white iris.
Cheek patches: violet.
Wings:
white, free from all markings.
Primary wing flights: white
Primary tail feathers: blue.
Feet and legs: blue/grey.

Whitewing Cobalt As the Whitewing Skyblue but not less than 90% of the cobalt body colour.
Primary tail feathers: darker in proportion.

Whitewing Mauve As the Whitewing Skyblue but not less than 90% of the mauve body colour, free from any grey suffusion.
Primary Tail Feathers: darker in proportion.

Whitewing Violet As the Whitewing Skyblue but not less than 90% of the violet body colour.
Primary Tail Feathers: darker in proportion.

Whitewing Skyblue
General body colour:
rump, breast, flanks and underparts; grey of an even depth of colour throughout, not less than 90% of the normal variety in depth and intensity. 
Mask:
white, with the throat spots only very faintly visible; greyish white in colour. The  white of the mask extending over the frontal and crown, to merge with the faintly visible undulations at the back of the head. The frontal and crown should be clear and free from all markings.
Markings:
on cheeks, back of head and neck faintly visible on a white ground, all markings should be free from any intrusion of body colour.
Cere: blue in cocks, brown in hens.
Eyes: black with a white iris.
Cheek patches: grey.
Wings:
white, free from all markings.
Primary wing flights: white.
Primary tail feathers: grey.
Feet and legs: blue/grey.

(Note: there are light, medium and dark shades of Whitewing Grey. The shade of the cheek patches may change according to the shade of the body colour).

Primary tail feathers of neutral or with body colour suffusion will be acceptable as found in the Southern Hemisphere.

Opaline, Opaline Cinnamon Yellow-wings and Whitewings & Yellowface/Goldenface Whitewings should be shown in the A.O.C. class.

Rainbows should be shown in the Rare Variety class.

Scale of Points

Condition, size, type & balance                                                  35

Shape & size of head inc mask & spots                                       25

Colour                                                                                       15

Variety markings                                                                        25

Guidelines for Judges & Exhibitors

Clearwings (Normal Yellow-wings and Whitewings)  The following deviations from the colour standard SHALL BE PENALISED

a)         Dilution of the body colour

b)         Pale violet, pale blue or pale grey cheek patches.

Recognition

It should also be noted that the body colour must be not less than 90% of the normal variety in depth and intensity.

Recognition
If we look closely at the B.S. standard it will be seen that the cheek patches of the Clearwing must be the same as the normal budgerigar, i.e. violet, except in the grey and greygreen series where it is grey as the normal.

It should also be noted that the body colour must be as near to the depth of the normal as possible.

With these two easy to recognise points in mind, there should be no confusion between Whites and Yellows, or indeed the Cinnamon form; they do not carry this deep colouring, either in the body or cheek patch.

The Dark Factor
There are three shades in all colours other than Violets - Light, Medium and Dark. The Light Suffusion has no Dark Factor, the Medium has one and the Dark has two factors present.

The Colours are in the following Groups:-

LIGHT Skyblue, Light Green, Light Grey, Light Yellow, White Skyblue

MEDIUM Dark Green, Cobalt, Dark Yellow, White Cobalt, Medium Grey

DARK Olive, Mauve, Olive Yellow, White Mauve, Dark Grey

The Dark Factor can only be reproduced where both birds from the pairing carries one or more Dark Factor.

Clearwing Matings and Expectations

The clearwing factor is only dominant to ordinary yellows or whites. The whitewing and yellow-wing can be reproduced by mating with any variety or colour which is split for white or yellow, but the proportion will be small. Some of the non-clearwing birds bred from this pairing will be split for clearwing and others for white and yellow.

It should be realised when mating your birds that the variety exists in two forms - purebreeding, carrying two factors (2-F) for clearwing and the other carrying one factor (1-F). It is unlikely that an individual is (2-F) unless it has come from (2-F) parents.

To determine if the bird is pure breeding it should be mated to a white or yellow. If only clearwings appear it is definitely (2-F), but all the youngsters from the pairing will be (1-F) and capable of reproducing white and yellow.

Recommended Pairings

Yellow-wing Light Green X Yellow-wing Dark Green Retains size and improves body colour of Light Green
Yellow-wing Light Green/Blue X Whitewing Cobalt Improves size of Whitewings and retains depth of body colour
Yellow-wing Dark Green X Whitewing Skyblue Improves body colour of Whitewings
Yellow-wing Olive Green X Whitewing Skyblue Produces 100% Type I Clearwings
Whitewing Skyblue X Whitewing Cobalt Retains size and improves body colour of Skyblue
Yellow-wing Light Green X Whitewing Mauve Produces 100% Type II Clearwings

The Type I and II birds bred from the above pairings will prove to be of immense value to you in reproducing Whitewing Cobalts and Violets with outstanding size and always providing the parents are of good quality, the exhibition qualities will be exceptional. The following suggested matings should bring about the desired effect.

Yellow-wing Dark Green/Blue (Type I) X Whitewing Cobalt
Yellow-wing Dark Green/Blue (Type II) X Whitewing Skyblue

An immediate improvement in size of the Whitewing Cobalts bred will be seen from these two matings.

Yellow-wing Dark Green/Blue (Type I) X Whitewing Violet

Providing the parents have reasonable wing colouring, some exceptional exhibition Whitewing Violets will be bred.

As a general rule, pair Whitewings X Yellow-wing and Light X Dark Factor. Not only will this enable you to breed both whitewing and yellow-wing, but also to reproduce birds in all colour shades, i.e. Light, Dark and Olive Green and Skyblue, Cobalt Mauve and Violet in the Blue Series.

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