Brushy Creek Aviary - Breeding Journal 2016

[Colt]

So I find it much easier to keep track of dates when there is a copy of what I'm doing here on the Finch Forum. It's all in one place and not scattered across dozens of papers across my house for my to lose when I'm looking for something important.

The purpose of this will be for me to chronicle breeding over the year. I'll attempt to post pictures (even though I find it a colossal pain...lol), as well as describe my experience and answer any questions you might have for me.

For current pictures please look at my Facebook page for the aviary:

https://www.facebook.com/Brushy-Creek-A ... 659711916/

Here is how the birdroom is setup for the time being and where all my birds are located:

Breeding Cage 1 - RH PB GB x RH PB GB Gouldian Pair
Breeding Cage 2 - Strawberry Finch Pair (wild-caught) - nest, no eggs
Breeding Cage 3 - Strawberry Finch Pair (captive-bred x wild-caught) - nest, no eggs
Breeding Cage 4 - Isabelle/Ino x Albino Shaft-tail Pair - on eggs

Flight 1 - Juvenile Flight (Society, Gouldian, and Chestnut-breasted Mannikins currently)
Flight 2 - Pygmy Ground Dove Pair - nest, no eggs; Fawn Frill x Grey Crested Society Pair - chicks

Breeding Cage 5 - Yellow-faced Pied x Yellow-faced Isabelle Pied Star Finch Pair
Breeding Cage 6 - Fawn-Self x Red-eyed White Society Pair - chicks
Breeding Cage 7 - Black Grey x Pearl-Grey Society Pair - chicks
Breeding Cage 8 - Fawn Dilute x Grey Dilute Society Pair - chicks
Breeding Cage 9 - Chocolate Pied x Chocolate Pied Society Pair - fostering Strawberry eggs...
Breeding Cage 10 - Chestnut Frill x Pearl-Grey Crested Society Pair - chicks
Breeding Cage 11 - Pearl-Grey x Black-Grey Society Pair - chicks
Breeding Cage 12 - Crested Fawn Pied x Chestnut Pied Society Pair - chicks
Breeding Cage 13 - Black-Grey x Chestnut-Grey Society Pair - chicks
Breeding Cage 14 - Orange-breasted x Orange-breasted Zebra Pair - multiple clutches; incubation not consistent

Flight Cage 3 - Isabelle x Isabelle Shaft-tail Pair + 2 Fawn hens - eggs; not sure what's actually going on...

Breeding Cage 15 - BH WB dfYB x YH WB YB Gouldian Pair
Breeding Cage 16 - Normal x Normal Scarlet-chested Parakeet Pair - investigating nest box
Breeding Cage 17 - Rosey x Rosey Bourke Parakeet Pair + 1 Normal/Lutino Bourke hen
Breeding Cage 18 - Pygmy Ground Dove Pair

Flight Cage 4 - Normal/Lutino x Lutino Blue-faced Parrot Finch Pair - on eggs
Flight Cage 5 - Owl Finch Colony - Normal, Split, and Fawn - eggs; Blue Diamond Dove Pair

Breeding Cage 19 - Tri-colored Mannikins
Breeding Cage 20 - Chestnut-breasted Mannikins - chicks
Breeding Cage 21 - RH PB/LB sfBB x BH WB BB Gouldian Pair (Very unrelated and this is a test breeding...the hen is from Florida and the male was bred here in Texas.)
Breeding Cage 22 - BH LB/WB sfYB/BB x BH PB YB/BB? Gouldian Pair - on eggs
Breeding Cage 23 - Normal Black-cheek and Chestnut-flanked White Black-cheek Zebra hens

Flight Cage 6 - White-rumped Blue Diamond Dove Pair - on eggs; Grey Pied x Chocolate Crested Society Pair - chicks
Flight Cage 7 - Normal Pied x Seagreen Pied Red-throated Parrot Finch; Painted Finch Trio - on eggs
Flight Cage 8/9 - Amethyst Starling Pair x2; Rosey/Ino x Rubino Bourke Parakeet - chicks

Indoor Aviary - RH PB dfYB x BH PB GB Gouldian Pair

[debbie276]

Breeding Cage 21 - RH PB/LB sfBB x BH WB BB Gouldian

Curious, what is a sfBB?

Sounds like a nice variety of birds, best of luck

[GitaBooks]

I love the variety you have too.
Records are very smart, but yes, they are hard to keep track of. : )

I look forward to hearing more about your birds.

[Colt]

debbie276 - Oh did I call it something wrong? The genetic calculator calls is a Pastel SF Blue...

[debbie276]

Breeding Cage 21 - RH PB/LB sfBB x BH WB BB Gouldian Pair

The genetic calculator calls is a Pastel SF Blue...

I think you forgot the Pastel.
If it is a Pastel SF Blue I would think a Pastel bird with one Single Blue gene which would be the same as Pastel/Blue (Pastel split to Blue). Visually a yellow body bird with a hidden gene for Blue.

I think what you really mean is a SF Pastel Blue. One Single Pastel gene and two Blue genes. Visually it is a lighter colored blue body with all black areas gray.

[Colt]

That is precisely what I meant. Self-teaching does have it's limits. Thank you for setting me straight. He is a lighter blue than the hen so that is correct.

In other news I had one tossed Owl chick this morning and one unfed in the nest which is really no surprise. Owls are so hit and miss with me. Either they breed great or they don't. And usually they do best when I forget they are even there. So I plopped both the babies underneath a Society pair who's eggs should be hatching in the next day or so. They are good parents and settled right down on the little ones. Hopefully they feed them. Everyone got fresh eggfood this morning.

I ripped apart one of the Strawberry nests so they'd start over from scratch. I've read building the nest gets them in the breeding mood.

I candled all the Shaft-tail eggs in the larger flight and nothing was fertile. Which didn't surprise me. There was at least ten eggs in the nest the true pair sits on and the two hens who have claimed another one had about twenty. So I tossed all those and we'll see exactly what happens this go around.

Chestnut-breasted babies were begging loud and clear and the Painted hen was sitting tight on her nest as was the Blue-face Parrot male who must have relieved the hen as she was cuddled with their only chick from their first clutch. The one pair of Gouldians also seem to be incubating their eggs. I'll be interested to see if he actually bred her. They are getting along fabulously now, but have only been together about two weeks and she was super hateful to him for a majority of that time. All the Society chicks look fat and happy. I'm going to be up to my eyeballs in those if I'm not careful.

[Colt]

So things seemed to start out well this breeding season but rapidly tanked for the majority of the species.

I've had one Gouldian chick hatch and wean. The Blue-faced Parrots have been breeding really well though. I'm getting Normal and Lutino chicks from each clutch. The Painted Finches are finally feeding their chicks (knock on wood). Of course the Societies are being prolific. My Zebras aren't doing anything. The Scarlet-chested Parakeets had one infertile clutch but the Bourkes have been popping kids out left and right and are now in jail without a nest box to force her to take a break. The Owls had a few chicks they fed and a few they tossed. So that's pretty par for normal. Both pairs of Diamond Doves are on eggs. Chestnut-breasted Mannikins are taking a break. I've decided to stop working with Stars for the time being and focus on a few other species, like the Strawberries who are driving me absolutely insane. One pair won't breed and the other pair lays and stops incubating a few days before they hatch. I have yet to catch the eggs in time to get them under Society finches...It's so frustrating.

[Sally]

Colt On the Strawberry pair that is laying, take the eggs as soon as they have finished the clutch, the Societies should incubate and feed them.

[Jen]

Colt You have quite a collection of beautiful birds! Wow!!! How do you keep up with so many species and cages....just thinking about it makes me dizzy! Impressive!