Influencing the chance for gouldian female chicks

[paddywack]

Hi there,

Is there a way to influence clutch composition to select for females? Here in Minnesota we are in the middle of a no female gouldian crisis. I have been to 4 bird fairs, and female gouldians are almost non-existent. Prices are higher on females because the breeders know they are hard to find. One breeder suggested trying a black light, but she had not actually had any experience with that yet. Anyone have suggestions on how to breed for more females?

[ac12]

From what I have read, availability of food is important.
If there isn't enough food, the hen will produce more males than females.
The problem with food is, WHAT food?
We don't know what food the hen is triggering on. So it ends up being a shotgun approach where you have to provide a lot of all the different kinds of food that the hen wants to eat; seeds, egg, greens, etc.

[debbie276]

I do believe there are scientific studies done with black lights that do say it produces more hens if you have lopsided clutches.

[Haider]

how many females are you looking for?

[lovezebs]

paddywack

http://scienceblogs.com/grrlscientist/2 ... -drives-m/

Thought you might find this article interesting and informative.

[paddywack]

Haider, I was able to pick up one female at the last bird fair, which brings my female grand total to 3. I currently have 4 males, so another female would be good. It took me a whole year of bird shows to add the 2 additional females to my flock.

Lovezebs, Great article. I am very interested in the biological and genetic aspect of breeding, so this article was very much appreciated. I did not realize that gouldians were threatened in the wild. Makes me thankful that there is a strong breeding program here in America.

[GouldianGuy]

Lovezebs, Great article. I am very interested in the biological and genetic aspect of breeding, so this article was very much appreciated. I did not realize that gouldians were threatened in the wild. Makes me thankful that there is a strong breeding program here in America.

The biggest issue with Gouldians is that they do not know why they are still declining despite efforts to protect habitat and to stop wild capture. My understanding is that there are a few "wild" breeding programs out there, but most Australian Goulds in captivity are no longer wild-type Goulds and may be a detriment to future generations if released. That being said, if it came to be, I'm sure a flock of captive Goulds could boost numbers, just might be more susceptible to disease and predators.

[debbie276]

They are putting their finger on why there is a decline. Adding special deep nest boxes in the wild are one of several programs to help increase their numbers.

Check out save the gouldian fund
http://savethegouldian.net

They have a new site but used to have links to many articles by Sarah Pryke