male or female?& finch questions

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 4:22 am

hi,

i might be going to bird market in two weeks just wanted to know a few things for now:

how do i tell the diffrence male or female zebra finch?
and if theres any other species finches u would like to tell me the diffrence feel free.

thanks

StevePax · Post by **StevePax** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 9:03 am

In general, the male zebra finch has orange cheek patches, and the female doesn't. Not all the different breeds of zebra follow this rule, though - like the all-white ones don't get cheek patches at all. But, the male is the singer, too, pretty strictly. If you hear that nasally crazy song, you can be sure it's a male.

Of course, at the Bird Market, the seller likely knows the difference, and will probably be able to reliably tell you male or female, if it's possible to know. Lots of bird species simply don't have a difference by looking at them.

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 9:51 am

so the orange patched white one is a female and the non patched one is a male?

and also can u mix them in breeding the white ones with the normal zebra finch?

StevePax · Post by **StevePax** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 11:44 am

No, the other way 'round. Orange patches=male, no patches=female.

As for the white ones mixing with the normals, yes, they all mix happily. You'd have to wait for the genetics experts here to tell you what your babies would look like, but the zebras don't tend to be very prejudices about the different breeds in their family.

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 12:12 am

as long as they are zebra's ok cool.
can someone tell me about Goulding Finch's how to tell apart the male and female please?

few other questions:

-do zebra's perch sleep or do need to buy a nest to sleep in(same for goulding finch's)?

- is there anything special i need to take in if they end up breeding in future? wat do i need? .

thanks

plantsandbirds · Post by **plantsandbirds** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 7:08 am

As a brand new finch owner I made the nest=sleep mistake

Definately nest=BABIES! heh heh No doubt about it. I thought that my pair needed a nice cozy place and oh, didn't they look so cute in their little grass nest (laughing at myself here). Soon enough I heard little "peep", "peep", peep" coming out of there.

I think you'll find your finches will like to roost on a perch. Mine like a swing I have centered high in the middle of the cage and they also like the silk plants that I've spaced in the corners of the cage. Sometimes they all line up across the swing (very cute) but mostly they pair off and go to their own corners of the cage.

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 8:24 am

is it hard to breed them since u are a new finch owner maybe u can explain to me wat happin wit u

StevePax · Post by **StevePax** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 8:25 am

Zebras don't need a nest. They adapt quite nicely to sleeping on a perch. In fact, Zebras are very, very easy to breed - put in a nest and some nesting material, and the will breed, almost for sure. If you want babies, great. If not, then don't put in a nest.

As for sexing the lady gouldians, in general the male colors are brighter and more pronounced, and the female colors are slightly duller and muted. Take a look at this page for some great detailed information. Under the heading of "Physical Description" there are little drawings of all the different coloring mutations, cock on the left, hen on the right. There are also several good photos there. There are a couple of combinations that are tough to tell (like the lilac-breasted, at least for me), so look at the colors of the head and breast to identify the hens.

Good luck!

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 8:29 am

are the gould finch's as easy as the zebra finch's?

StevePax · Post by **StevePax** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 8:34 am

No, the Lady Gouldian finch is much more difficult to breed than the zebra finch. Again, on that page I linked to above, there is lots of information about breeding. Special consideration is given to temperature, hours of daylight, humidity, food, nutritional supplements, etc. Zebras don't seem to care as much about a lot of that stuff.

In fact, just keeping the Lady Gouldian finch is more difficult than a zebra - they have some different nutritional needs (like extra iodine, from a kelp extract, for example), and are in general more fragile birds. Of course, many, many people have successfully kept Gouldians and raised babies, so it is by no means impossible. I can't speak much from personal experience on this one, as I don't have any of this breed. But sit down and have a good read on that page I linked in my prior post, and you'll get pretty much all the information you need.

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:00 am

i think i will start off with zebra finch's because they are easier practice and get the experience then later on ill try gould finch's.

lol and im also getting a lorikeet hopefully.

Thalia · Post by **Thalia** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 10:16 am

just remember that zebras are also one of the loudest finches you can pick. Why are you so interested in breeding? Also, I'm sure you already know this, but the lori can't go in the same cage as the finches

Edit: Oh sorry I didn't mean to imply that Goulds were good starter birds, I just meant that you might want to do a little more research before jumping in with zebra finches, for all the reasons Sally mentioned.

Post by **Sally** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 10:26 am

Lady Gouldians really aren't a beginner bird. For one thing, the cost--they run 5 to 10 times the cost of Zebras. As StevePax said, they require more care, more specialized diet, and they are definitely harder to breed.

Zebras are an excellent starter bird--inexpensive, hardy, and they are very entertaining (they have more personality than a lot of finches). If you have a pair, they will even breed without a nest. You can find eggs in seed cups, on the floor, etc. But unless you want lots of babies, or have a place to sell or trade the babies, don't give them a nest. Zebras are like rabbits, and they can quickly get out of control. Also, with a nest, the female can lay eggs and hatch out babies to the point of exhaustion. Even if she doesn't hatch the eggs, laying them takes a lot out of the females.

Another excellent starter bird is the Society finch. You can't tell the sex by looking at them, you have to catch the male singing to a female, but they also have a lot of personality, are inexpensive, and very easy to keep.

Just do lots of reading--the Finch Information Center link on this page is a great place to start. Once you feel comfortable with your Zebras, then you can think about expanding to other species of finch. Trust me, they are addictive!

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:03 pm

Thalia wrote:just remember that zebras are also one of the loudest finches you can pick. Why are you so interested in breeding? Also, I'm sure you already know this, but the lori can't go in the same cage as the finches
Edit: Oh sorry I didn't mean to imply that Goulds were good starter birds, I just meant that you might want to do a little more research before jumping in with zebra finches, for all the reasons Sally mentioned.

lol im not that new i know that u cant mix them im getting a lorikeet as a pet.

mrkiss · Post by **mrkiss** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:03 pm

thanks! i will look into that