Dun on Black: Grulla
Shaila, a 3 YO (in these pics) AQHA/NFQHA Grulla mare - Tested Ee aa, neg
cream, neg LWO, and is Dd, with year-round brindle pattern (see pics below).
Photo contributed by Tara, www.risingmoonranch.com
Grulla is the name for one or two dun genes on solid (non-bay) black.
It's a Spanish word, the name of a crane that's a mousy gray color like
these horses often are. It's pronounced "groo-ya", correctly,
though not always.
Because they are a dilution of true black, grullas will often be a
"cooler" color (fewer yellow/ red/ orange tones) than other duns. Their
points will usually remain true black, as do their dun markings.
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Many say that a mostly-black head is a good indication of grulla.
Others go by a muted or dark body shade. This page, however, is only
showing genetically-proven (this is before the dun test) examples.
A horse is a "proven grulla" if it
tests to have at least one E (black based), aa (no agouti/bay) and no cream gene
... plus it must have a dorsal stripe and leg markings on at least two
legs (or a positive test for dun.)
By this method, we establish what a grulla
*usually* looks like, and what a grulla *can* look like.
Grullas can be any body color from slate
blue to brown to silvery to nearly black. We don't know if this is
due to variations in the dun genes, the base color (black), or both.
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Study of "True Grulla" #1 -- "Shaila":
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See Shaila's main photo at the top of this section. Click this small
version to see a collage of Shaila's dorsal stripe, leg markings, ears,
etc.
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   These three photos show some of the variation in color that she has at
various seasons and different lighting. This is a common
characteristic of grulla: it looks so different in different lights,
angles, seasons, and is, at its best, still difficult to describe. |
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This photo of her body is included to show that
duns without a cream gene can have dapples. (She tested negative
for cream.)
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Tara sent us these pics as a "bonus"
... a very good example of brindling, also on Shaila. Some brindling is
due to a genetic anomaly known as a "chimera"; other brindling appears
to be related to dun.
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 "True
Grulla" #2, --Successful Outta The Blue
Tested (aa Ee) true grulla Morgan mare
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True Grulla #3 -- Im Half Show
       
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True Grulla #4 -- Silver Bullet
Diane Pinney, of
Spanish Sage Ranch, writes, "Here is my Kiger Stallion, Silver Bullet, shown here about 3 years ago,
age 4. I refer to him as a silver grulla because it best describes the color
he is...until the sun bleaches him in the summer. He has been color tested and has no cream gene. I
even asked them to run the test twice to be sure."
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Home / Up / Dun / Red Dun / Brown Dun / Grulla
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click HERE.
This web site created with delight by
Hippo-Logistics
© 2009 Barbara A. Kostelnik |
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