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Breeding Colors

Colors

Standard - Our Classic Grey Glider. There are some variations within it ranging from very dark(Black Beauties) to Reddish Tones(Cinnamon, Lion, etc.) to lighter hues(Buttercream, Strawberry, etc.)

Patterns

White Face - A glider that lacks the dark ear bars.

Mosaic - A sugar glider with various white patches & markings. There are several mosaic variations: White Mosaic, Ringtail Mosaic, Piebald Mosaic, etc.

Recessive Colors

Leucistic - A leucistic is a white sugar glider with black eyes. Also called a Black-Eyed White(BEW).

Albino - An albino is a white sugar glider with red eyes. Also called a T- albino.

Cremino - A cremino is an off-white sugar glider, with light cream markings and burgundy eyes. Also called a T+ albino.

Platinum - A silvery/taupe colored sugar glider that often has a reduced/thin stripe. There are two Platinum lines - Haley & Silverbelle. The Platinum & Leucistic genes can interact to produce a Platinum glider.

Other Colors/Patterns

White Tip - A sugar glider with a white tip on it's tail.

Genetics

Recessive Inheritance: Example One - Both parents carry a normal color gene (H) and a recessive color gene (h). They are (Hh). The parents show the normal color. Offspring carry (Hh), do not carry (HH), or show (hh) the color.

Example Two - One parent shows the recessive color gene (hh) and one parent is normal color (HH). ALL offspring will carry the recessive gene (Hh) because the parent that shows the color only has that gene to pass.

More about recessive is below.

Dominant is pretty easy. The offspring show the color if they get the gene and you only need one of a certain color parent to pass it. One mosaic and one standard will have mosaic babies. The babies that are not mosaic will not carry the mosaic gene. White face is the same, if it shows it's there. If it doesn't show it's not there.

Dominant Inheritance: Example - One parent (Ff) has a dominant color gene (F). This gene over rides the normal color gene (f). The parent shows the dominant color. When mated with a normal color sugar glider (ff) the offspring either get the color (Ff) or do not (ff). There are no carriers, if the gene is present it shows. (mosaic and white face)

Recessive Colors: Leucistic, Albino, and Cremino

Dominant Patterns: Mosaic and White Face

Colors with Unknown Inheritance: White Tip

Het: Het is short for heterozygous, and means possessing two different forms of a particular gene, one inherited from each parent. In this case we are talking about the color gene. A het is a normal color glider that carries a recessive color gene.

Possible Het: A normal color sugar glider that has a chance to carry a recessive color gene.

Recessive Breeding

This is the most confusing part of color breeding. Recessive breeding is where we get hets and possible hets. Recessive colors include leucistic, albino, cremino, & pure platinum(from non leu lines). The following information applies to all of them but I will use leucistic as my example color. Normal applies to any sugar glider that is not from the leucistic line.

Leucistic + Leucistic =

Leucistic (always)

Notes: It is my opinion that this kind of breeding should never be done. The bloodlines of our leucistics are not spread out enough to support it.

Leucistic + 100% Leu Het =

Leucistic (50% of the time)
100% Leu Het (50% of the time)

Notes: It is my opinion that this kind of breeding should never be done. The bloodlines of our leucistics are not spread out enough to support it.

Leucistic + Normal =

100% Leu Het (always)

Notes: This is breeding out, and a recommended pairing. Normal color offspring.

100% Leu Het + 100% Leu Het =

Leucistic (25% of the time)
100% Leu Het (50% of the time)
Normal (25% of the time)

Notes: Approximately 1 in 4 offspring will have the recessive color. 3 in 4 offspring will have the normal color. 2 in 3 of the normal color offspring will have the recessive color gene. These are sold as having a 66% chance of having the leu gene. This is not breeding out and is not a recommended pairing.

100% Leu Het + Normal =