Dilute Green Cheeked Conure

Inheritance: Autosomal recessive

The American Dilute is a distinct mutation separate from both cinnamon and fallow, operating on its own locus through its own mechanism. It works by reducing eumelanin across the entire bird, producing an overall softer, washed appearance the body green becomes noticeably lighter and more pastel, dark markings are muted, and the general contrast of the bird is reduced. The effect is a gentler dilution than fallow, which tends to produce a more dramatically altered bird, making American Dilute visually intermediate between wild-type and fallow in overall lightness.

Unlike fallow, eye color remains dark, which is one of the clearest distinguishing features between the two mutations. Birds carrying only one copy are visually indistinguishable from wild-type and can only be confirmed through test pairings.

The beak and feet can have a varied and sometimes mottle appearance.

Combining Dilute and Opaline can lead to a bird with a much lighter beak and light feet with dark nails