Official Website of the UNC, Promoting Nuns around the world.

Nun Standard of Perfection

MARKINGS

The head, bib, tail and ten primary flight feathers on each wing must be coloured. The rest of the body / wings must be pure white. The marked portion must be well defined and regular in outline, deep and lustrous in colour. The colour of such feathers must be even in shade and extend well down to the quill of each feather.

 TYPE. SIZE & STATION

The Nun must be short, cobby and of medium size. Sprightly in movement, upright and alert in carriage with a well proportioned body and a large shell crest. The height of an adult cock Nun must be 9" from the base of the foot to the top of the head when standing correctly, and 9 1/2" in length measured from the front of the chest to the tip of the tail. Height measurement does not include the shell

 SHELL CREST

Must be as high, wide and thick as possible, continuing equally on both sides until it meets the head j on the same level as the beak and just below the eye ceres. The feathers must be vertically erect at the front of the shell making a 90-degree angle with the top of the head. The feathers then falling away to the back of the head in a regular curve with no split, until at the back of the neck falling the reverse way to form a mane. The feathers at the sides of the shell must also fall away evenly to blend in with the neck. Any rosettes or splits (parts) are unacceptable. The shell must be entirely free of foul feathers (colour).

 HEAD

Must be full in frontal with the forehead rising forward boldly above the beak in an unbroken curve until directly above the eye, then proceeding horizontally to meet the shell at a 90-degree angle. When viewed from the front the space between the eyes and at the cheeks must be full with plenty of substance, giving a broad and rounded appearance (eyes should not be visible).

 BEAK .

Must be short (3/8”), stout and straight set, ie: horizontal to the ground with close fitting mandibles.

An imaginary line running between both mandibles and extending backwards would be just below the eye cere, but level with the shell setting. Colour to be black in Black / Blue / Ash Red, horn in Brown/Dun/ Silver/ Ash Red and flesh coloured for Red/Yellow/ Ash Yellow & Khaki. (Refer to standard colours for additional guidance)

WATTLE

Must be small, fine in texture and with a delicate white bloom.

 EYES 

Must be circular, full pearl or white in colour with a small black pupil. Must be centrally placed in the head, halfway between the beak opening and the shell setting. It must also line up vertically over the ball of the foot. When viewed in profile feathers should not obscure the eyes.

CERES

Must be small, narrow and fine in texture, matching the colour of the beak.

 BIB to be full, deep, free of foul feathers and regular in curve, being a continuation of the head markings and joining in at the base of the shell but not extending up at the back of the shell or mane. The bib must extend down the neck and finish on the chest level even to the wing butts. The bib marking must not be visible when the Nun is viewed from the rear.

 BODY

Must be cobby, broad at the shoulders narrowing to the tail when viewed from above, with a full, wide and rounded chest carried high and well forward. The keel must be straight and extend behind the legs. The neck must be strong looking, broad / thick where it meets the shoulders gradually tapering to the throat and medium in length to provide a solid foundation for the head and shell. This is often referred to as the "mane"

WING BUTTS

Must be carried well forward and close to the body, giving the whole body a taper or wedge shape from shoulders to tail. They must be entirely free of foul feathers.

 LEGS & THIGHS

Must be straight, clean and entirely free from feathers below the hocks and short to medium in length. They must be set back and well apart to give a slight hollow appearance between the shoulders, which imparts so much smartness to the carriage / station of the Nun. The legs should be bright red

(Youngsters may display some blackness which goes away at maturity). Thighs must be entirely free of foul feathers.

FEET

The ball of the foot must be vertically below the eye, small, bright red in colour. The toenails must be the same colour of the beak and eye Ceres. The feet should be free of feathers.

 FLIGHTS

Must be tight fitting; lie close to the body and on top of the tail. In no case should the flights cross over the top of the tailor be carried below the tail. Must show a full compliment of ten primary and ten secondary flights per wing. All coloured flights must run in sequence from the outermost flight inwards.

TAIL: Must be narrow and as short as possible, extending no more than half an inch past the last flight. The

tail should have a full complement of twelve tail feathers. The coloured marking of the tail to start at the rump from above and the vent from below and display a clear / sharp delineation from the white feathers of the back. The tail must be carried 1/2" above the floor.

 FEATHERING & CONDITION

The feather must be soft, broad, smooth and with good sheen. Condition must be clean and hard with tight fitting feathers on the body, head, tail and flights. A certain amount of looseness must be recognized / allowed to the shell feathers to achieve the -desired height, width and shape for which the Nun is renown. This also includes the feathering from the back of the crest down to the shoulder that forms the "mane".

 FAULTS

Other than major disqualification faults, every other aspect of a Nun that is not conforming with the standard of perfection is classed as a minor fault. It is left to the Judges discretion as to the severity of each fault, points awarded and consequently the placing of a bird in its class.

MAJOR FAULTS

More than ½ "  larger or 1" smaller in size, crouched stance (lack of station), narrow chest, crooked keel, shell set too low on the head, small shell, weak sides to the shell, narrow head (lack of substance between the eyes), down faced, poor rise from wattle to the head, eyebrows, narrow weak neck, eye not over ball of the foot, poor beak setting, beak longer than ½ ", stained beak, gravelled eyes, crossed flights, dropped wing or flights, small bib, bib extending around the back of the neck, rough or coarse feathering, sootiness or uneven colouring, coloured feathers in white portion, white feathers in coloured markings, blue / barred tail except blue, silver & grizzle colours, poor trimming techniques. Missing tail or flight feathers providing the replacement quill is noticeable, otherwise assumption is feather of improper colour and will be disqualified.

DISQUALIFICATION FAULTS

Shell capping head, white lining to shell (white feathers in front of shell), rosettes, slip flighting, less

than 7x7 or more than 13x13 coloured flights, more than 12 tail feathers, white feathers behind the eyes, bull/broken / orange / odd eyes, spindle or deformed beak, sick out of condition birds, pinholes / lice, excessive trimming / cutting of feathers, starching / ironing of the shell, exhibiting borrowed birds or any act of fraudulence.

 SCHEDULE OF POINTS IN JUDGING NUN PIGEONS  

Flights Maximum of 10 points.

Grand Total Rating  = 100

Webmaster email spud1@iprimus.com.au