Do some bird breeders inbreed their birds to create desirable physical traits in their babies?
Yes. There are a tremendous number of bird color mutations, especially in budgies and cockatiels, and most of them are rather inbred. The wild type usually lives longer (although there are no guarantees). Some color mutations are fairly common and birds with them may not be too inbred. Rare color mutations may all be descended from a single ancestor, so even if the mutation itself is harmless, they’ve all been inbred. Over time you can introduce more genetic variety into the strain, but it’s seldom done (there’s more market for new, exotic colors than for healthier versions of old colors). Color mutations are the most common type of mutation among parrots, but not the only ones. “English” budgies have been bred to be considerably larger than the wild type (also puffier sideburns, higher forehead, and more erect carriage) – and they usually live only about half as long. Other birds are bred for other specialties, such as various types of song, feathers, behavior, or egg-laying. Most mut
