His Melissa. Greeting to Austarlaia from the USA.
you may want to consider using Procion dyes. These are chloro-s-triazine dyes  that bind permanently to proteins.They are used extensively for  textile dyeing and so are readily available as powders and solutions in most hobby stores etc. They are available in an enormous range of colors. They resist all solvents including xylene and alcohols.
They are toxic (as are many of our dyes if ingested) but providing you aren't going to dip the entire bird in them this is OK.
If you need further details please let me know.
Barry

Bruce Abaloz wrote:

> Dear Histonetters,
>
> My name is Melissa, and I'm a researcher at the University of Melbourne,Australia, with a novel problem.  We need to colour-mark seabirds (specifically gannets), with a plumage dye that will last 4-6 months, and withstand regular dunking in sea water whenever the birds are foraging. We want to apply the dye just once (no touch ups) at the beginning of the breeding season to minimise disturbance to the birds.  Dye colour is not an issue, so long as it's readily visible against white plumage (so darker colours would be best).
>
> Many thanks in advance for your help!
>
> cheers,
> Melissa.
>
> BRUCE ABALOZ
> HISTOLOGIST
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> AUSTRALIA.
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>                          (AN AQUARIAN TIGER)
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