Agouti Ring Colors

Full Color (C allele) agouti colors have an orange or fawn intermediate band. The ticking is either black (chestnut agouti), blue (opal), chocolate (chocolate agouti), or lilac (lynx). The undercolor is usually a lighter version of the ticking color. Correct lynx have white undercolor, caused by the action of modifier genes which remove the dove grey undercolor lynx would normally have. Keeping correct undercolor often requires not breeding out to other colors, as all other agouti colors require colored undercolor. Opals may also end up with white undercolor, which is a disqualification.

Chinchilla Dark (cchd allele) agouti colors, otherwise known as "chinchilla colors", have a white intermediate band instead of orange or fawn. This is caused by the action of the cchd allele. It prevents all phaeomelanin (red-yellow pigment) from forming in the coat, leaving white instead.

Chinchilla Light/Sable (cchl_) agouti colors have the same white intermediate bands. However, the cchl allele also partially affects the eumelanin (black-brown pigment). the remaining color bands (ticking and undercolor) also have a bit less pigment. With seal chinchillas, the color of the ticking will be fairly uniform across the entire rabbit. However, if you look closely at a sable chinchilla or smoke pearl chinchilla, you will see the same shaded pattern of somewhat darker across the face, ears, and legs as a regular sable or smoke pearl. It is more difficult to see in the chinchilla version, though, as you're looking mostly at the ticking!

The Wideband (w) mutation is aptly named, as it widens the intermediate band. This reduces the effect the ticking has on the overall appearance of the color by allowing more of the intermediate band to show through.