The Pearl mutation was first bred in West Germany in 1967 and was the third mutation to appear in the Cockatiel. Pearl is a sex linked mutation and can be combined with many other mutations.
Individual feathers over all or most of the bird are affected by a lack of colour in a uniform pattern. Very much different to the lack of colour that characterises Pied. Pearl markings causes the feathers to look scalloped.
In the nest, Pearls cannot be identified until the chick is at pin feather stage. These pin feathers will look either striped or dotted before the feathers break out of the casing. The eye colour is the same for whatever the pearl is put with. For example, a normal Pearl will have dark eyes, a Cinnamon Pearl will have ruby eyes and a Lutino Pearl will have red eyes.
Both sexes can display equal amounts of pearls as juveniles. As cocks mature, they usually lose their pearling and will revert back to look like a normal cock bird (depending on what colour it is, i.e. Cinnamon, Pastel Silver etc.).
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| Whiteface Pearl hen |
Whiteface Pearl cock |