# Questions on Smokey



## loonecho (Feb 25, 2010)

Hi Everyone,

I have a spread black cockbird paired with a spread, undergrizzle tail marked hen. (all white with black tail) They have two young in the nest right now that are about 2 weeks old and I can see that they are both spread. One has a dark beak like I would expect, but the other has a light or horn-colored beak. Does this mean that the light beaked young bird is "Smokey"? It has no white markings whatsoever, so I don't think it is related to pied. On the other hand since its mother is extremely pied, it would carry pied recessively. Would that cause the light beak?

If it is smokey causing the light beak, does that mean that both parents carry smokey? The sire is solid black with a black beak. The tail-marked hen's beak is horn colored on one side and black on the other. I always assumed the beak color on her was a result of how heavily pied she is. 

I know that smokey also eliminates the albescent strip on the outside tail feathers. Does it do this even if the bird is Heterozygous smokey? And does this albescent strip even show up on a spread black bird in the first place? Neither parent shows the abescent strip but I can't remember seeing one on any spread black bird. 

I don't have pictures of any of them but will try to get some tomorrow to show what I am talking about. Thanks for any discussion or input you can give me.

Jim


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## MaryOfExeter (Sep 30, 2007)

Yes it does sound like the parents are carrying smokey. Heterozygous smokeys can have a partial albescent strip. I think it can vary a lot. Likewise, I have seen other flesh beaked blue birds with traces of albescent strips. Like I said, I think it definitely can vary in how strong/large the strip is. Blacks can definitely show the strip. Some of mine do. It is preferred that they don't in many breeds, so smokey is often found in blacks. The addition of dirty and sooty can help reverse the effect of the light skin while the missing strip makes a more uniform black color.


Anyway, yes piebald can effect the color of the skin. Any white on the head is liable to make the beak light or splotched, you'll notice on the babies that the legs can be splotched too and some nails may be white while others are black.


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