--- license: permission_granted topic_id: companion_species_health_feather_colour_almond_pet-bird category: companion-species-health title: "Pigeon (Columba livia) — Feather colour, almond (hereditary; OMIA-verified species predisposition)" lang: en source: "OMIA (Online Mendelian Inheritance in Animals, University of Sydney) species-specific hereditary-disorder record, saved verbatim to source_file; C1 substring-verified. Pulled 2026-08-24 from local OMIA database dump." source_file: pdf-raw/species-health/pet-bird_feather_colour_almond_3256.txt date_parsed: 2026-08-24 tokens_estimated: 418 verification: method: substring_match claims: 4 passed: 4 date: 2026-08-24 recovered: false path: companion-species-health/companion_species_health_feather_colour_almond_pet-bird/01_companion_species_health_feather_colour_almond_pet-bird.md source_document: "OMIA — Online Mendelian Inheritance in Animals (University of Sydney)" citation: authority: "OMIA — Online Mendelian Inheritance in Animals (University of Sydney)" title: "Pigeon (Columba livia) — Feather colour, almond (hereditary; OMIA-verified species predisposition)" url: "https://omia.org/OMIA001654/8932/" retrieved: "2026-08-24" ref: "OMIA species-specific hereditary-disorder records (omia.org), derived from local OMIA database dump; dataset: https://doi.org/10.25910/2AMR-PV70" doc_type: "academic animal-genetics database (species-specific disorder entries)" needs_review: false
verification_derived: method: derived_from_dataset source: "OMIA database dump (omia.xml, local); fields Gene/Variant/Article/OMIM" note: "Structured fields (gene, variant rsID/protein change, PubMed/DOI references, OMIM cross-link) extracted from OMIA dump and presented with first-hand values; not verbatim prose."---
Pigeon (Columba livia) — Feather colour, almond (hereditary; OMIA-verified species predisposition)
Source: first-hand OMIA (University of Sydney) species-specific hereditary-disorder record, saved verbatim to source_file; every claim below is a C1 byte-substring of it.
Claims
Species: Pigeon (Columba livia)Disorder: Feather colour, almondMode of inheritance: Bruders et al. (2020): "Almond is a sex-linked, semi-dominant trait controlled by the classical Stipper (St) locus. Heterozygous males (ZStZ+ sex chromosomes) and hemizygous Almond females (ZStW) are favored by breeders for their attractive plumage. In contrast, homozygous Almond males (ZStZSt) develop severe eye defects and often lack plumage pigmentation, suggesting that higher dosage of the mutant allele is deleterious."Summary: Bruders et al. (2020): "The classical pigmentation pattern in C. livia known as Almond is caused by a semi-dominant mutation (St allele) at the sex-linked Stipper (St) locus [Wriedt and Christie, 1925] . . . . Unlike most other pigmentation pattern traits in pigeons, the variegated or sprinkled patchwork of plumage colors in Almond is apparently random within and among individuals . . . Furthermore, the color pattern changes in an unpredictable manner with each molt [Hollander and Cole, 1950; Hollander, 1942; Quinn, 1971]. The number of pigmented feathers in Almond pigeons also increases with each successive molt, and this effect is more pronounced in males . . . . Notably, this phenomenon is the opposite of what is typically observed with pigmentation traits that change throughout the lifespan of an individual, such as vitiligo and graying, which result in a decrease in pigment over time . . . . In addition to Almond, at least six other alleles at St lead to varying degrees of depigmentation in pigeons, suggesting that the St locus might be a mutational hotspot".
Associated gene(s)
Derived from OMIA database dump (omia.xml, local); structured field, not verbatim prose. First-hand values below are verbatim substrings of the topic's pdf-raw/omia/<phene_id>.txt source file.
- Gene: Entrez Gene ID 392942189 (no symbol in OMIA GeneSynonym) — OMIA Phene_Gene
- OMIA molecular-genetics note: Bruders et al. (2020) "found a copy number variant (CNV) within the differentiated region that captures complete or partial coding sequences of four genes, including the melanosome maturation gene Mlana. We did not find fixed coding changes in genes within the CNV, but all genes are misexpressed in regenerating feather bud collar cells of Almond birds. Notably, six other alleles at the St locus ar…
Evidence (references)
Derived from OMIA database dump (omia.xml, local); structured field, not verbatim prose. First-hand values below are verbatim substrings of the topic's pdf-raw/omia/<phene_id>.txt source file.
- 1942. Auto-sexing in the domestic pigeon. Journal of Heredity — OMIA Phene_Article / Article
- 2020. A copy number variant is associated with a spectrum of pigmentation patterns in the rock pigeon (Columba livia). PLoS Genet — PubMed:PMID32433666 | DOI:10.1371/journal.pgen.1008274 — OMIA Phene_Article / Article
- 1925. Zur Genetik der gesprenkelten Haustaube. Induktive Abstammungs- und Vererbungslehre — OMIA Phene_Article / Article
- 1940. Somatic Mosaics in the Domestic Pigeon. Genetics — PubMed:PMID17246956 | DOI:10.1093/genetics/25.1.16 — OMIA Phene_Article / Article
- 1942. Auto-sexing in the domestic pigeon. Journal of Heredity — OMIA Phene_Article / Article
- 1971. The Pigeon Breeders Notebook An Introduction to Pigeon Science. Published by Author, Atwater, Ohio. — OMIA Phene_Article / Article
Comparative medicine (human OMIM)
Derived from OMIA database dump (omia.xml, local); structured field, not verbatim prose. First-hand values below are verbatim substrings of the topic's pdf-raw/omia/<phene_id>.txt source file.
- OMIM:605513 (type: gene) — OMIA Group_OMIM (via OMIA_ID)