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Stafford Canary Standard 

 

 

Crested

The crest feathers should radiate from a small circle  at the center of the top of the head and should finish level with the top of the eye. There should not be an obvious break at the back of the head where the crest meets the neck.

 

 

 

Non-Crested  

The head should have a broad well rounded appearance from whatever angle it is viewed. The forehead should have a good rise above the beak. The curve of the head should continue to rise to the center of the skull, giving the head a nice rounded appearance. The forehead should be broad as the head is behind the eye. And finally the head should have a browy appearance with heavy feathering above the eye.

 

 

Describing Stafford Canaries

 

Over the years there has been several terms used for the same canary traits. This diversity of terms can be very confusing to those who do not have years of experience in the canary fancy.

The standardizing of the descriptive terms and the order in which the terms are used, helps to reduce confusion and misunderstanding. The Stafford Canary Club of America has adopted the following terms and the order in which the descriptive terms are to be used when providing a written or verbal description of a Stafford Canary.

When describing a Stafford Canary, use the following order:

(1) Describe the head first: Is it crested or non-crested? If crested, is the crest clear,  or grizzled (both light and dark feathers) or dark?

(2) Is it frosted or non-frosted? If non-frosted, ideally there should be no white showing on the feather. However, what might be considered a check-frost in the Colorbred, should be considered non-frost in the Stafford, providing the frosting is very light (around vent, etc). If frosted, how much, light, medium, or heavy?

(3) Is the bird clear, ticked or variegated?

(4) Name the ground color: Red or Rose?

(5) If melanin, is it self, foul, or 3/4 dark? Name the melanistic color: Brown, Bronze, Agate, Isabel, Pastel, Ino, Opal, Satinette?

(6) Is it mosaic? If so, hen or cock?

 

Examples of the order descriptive terms are used:

(a) Dark Crested, Non-frosted, Variegated Red

(b) Grizzle (Gz) Crested, Light Frosted, Clear Rose

(c) Crested, Light Frosted, Red Bronze Self

(d) Dark Crested, Non-frosted, Red Bronze, 3/4 Dark

(e) Non-crested, Variegated, Rose Mosaic, Hen or Cock