ISO: Chestnut Breasted Mannikins and Diamond Firetails

[Gonz]

If anyone has them or can point me in the right direction I would appreciate it.
Thanks.

[Gonz]

For those of you who have been doing this a lot longer than I have. Are these finches that hard to find? Ive been looking everywhere and can't find any.

[isobea]

Gonz - Hi, I'm also in SoCal and have been interested in a pair or two for about two years. I haven't had any luck finding local breeders. At this point I will have to rebuild part of my aviary before I can start thinking about finding new birds in the fall. Let's keep each other updated. Good luck in your search.
Iso

[kcdozy]

My friend Scott raises them at http://www.pacificfinches.com/

[Gonz]

I emailed him a while back and got no response. Birds available on his website is outdated.

[kcdozy]

Just texted him and he said he would have them available around the end of July.

[isobea]

Hi Gonz - I'm just wondering if you ever got your mannikins. I'm still looking, have been asking around but nobody in the San Diego area seems to be breeding them. I haven't contacted Scott at pacificfinches yet because my aviary is just now ready for new birds.
Iso

[w.l.]

Hi Isobea,

I had long been looking for chestnut-breasted mannikins of the smaller, more colorful sharpii subspecies in vain for like 2 years, then got a single adult female I kept alone for ca 1 year. Finally a few month ago I got 6 new birds, 5 still in juv color!
So now I feel happy with these.

However, along with them I got a young hooded mannikin too. That is now beautifully colored out but now I have a new challenge finding mates for that one!

[Sally]

Gonz Check with Colt, he may have some.

[isobea]

Hi w.l.
congratulations on all your mannikins! My finch book shows both chestnut breasted ones (species and subspecies) side by side and I agree, the sharpii sure is beautiful. You are so lucky that they seem to be more readily available in Indonesia (and most likely a lot cheaper than they would be around here). I had to image-Google the hooded mannikin and really like them, too. Good luck on finding more so maybe you could build up a small flock. Keep us updated.
Iso

PS: Do you still have your black-crowned waxbills? Did they ever breed? Unfortunately mine eventually died one after the other (they were in pretty sad shape when I bought them but seemed to go through the first molt OK). Birds Express hasn't imported any since then.

[isobea]

I just found an amazing Youtube video that shows (among others) chestnut breasted mannikins scrambling to find a spot to land on a bird feeder. Lovely, lovely birds! Here is the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4N71G1zMwiA

[w.l.]

Isobea , I haven't lost a single black-crowned waxbill since we last talked about them, still have all 4. No breeding, probably because they are in a communal aviary and with their shyness they'd probably require more privacy.

Yes, my new sharpiis were pretty cheap, ca $2 each.
However to be able to buy them for such a price, I had to be in their homeland of Papua, and getting there is by no means cheap even from within the country.
Luckily, I have not lost a single one of them, and they are all colouring out nicely.

[isobea]

w.l. - You are so lucky! next time Birds Express imports some more bl.-cr. waxbills, I'll drive up and get another four.
As for going to Papua to get the mannikins: aside from the price to get there, I don't really see the hardship involved. What a great trip that must have been and if I remember correctly, you love to travel. One of these days I'll make it to your part of the world, too.
Iso

PS: Could you post some pictures of your new birds?

[w.l.]

In the past you said you would only get black-crowns again if you culd get some that are not wild-caught imports which I thought basically never getting any!
I am glad you've changed your mind, some species realistically only goinbto be available wild-caught.

The sharpiis are very nervous in a cage so I only have a horrible pic of them, along with 3 more species I brought back at the same time.

FB_IMG_1475356738775.jpg

On this first pic you can see 9 of them, some went to a friend.
You can also see the young spectabilis there, still uncolored.
I will have to take a better pic of the young lot later.

I have a nicer pic of the first, adult female one I had bought earlier:

FB_IMG_1475356778968.jpg

Another species also on that pic is the Streak-headed mannikin, of which I have 2 pairs now - pretty dull birds!

FB_IMG_1475356791912.jpg

To complete the gallery of my Papuan mannikins, I aldo have white-crowned that I was lucky enough to get closer to home earlier:

ln3.jpg

[w.l.]

On this last trip I was also lucky enough to see black-breasted mannikins and crimson finches in the wild:

FB_IMG_1469418118994.jpg

FB_IMG_1469420235681.jpg

The former never come on the markets, the latter I bred last year:

http://www.finchforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=30044

If you do make it to these parts, not necessarily to Papua but even just to Java and Bali, let me know!
You should at the very least see tons of the 2 most common munia species in the wild, and maybe more if you make an effort - also more if you visit markets.