Star Finch
The Star Finch, also known as the Rufous-tailed Finch or Red-faced Finch, is a small bird that is native to Australia and Indonesia.
The Star Finch has a distinctive appearance, with a bright red face and a rufous-colored tail. The rest of its plumage is mostly brown with white spots on the wings and back. Males have more prominent and brighter colors than females.
These birds are social and live in flocks in the wild. They are found in open woodlands, grasslands, and scrublands. They feed on a variety of seeds, grasses, and small insects.
In captivity, Star Finches are popular pets due to their beautiful colors, lively personalities, and relatively easy care requirements. They do well in aviaries and require a balanced diet of seeds, fruits, and vegetables. They also need plenty of space to fly and exercise, as well as perches, toys, and other forms of stimulation. Star Finches are known to be relatively calm and peaceful, and they can coexist well with other finch species.
Scientific Name: Bathilda ridicauda
Origin: Northern Australia
This is a popular Australian finch that is quite easy to breed. It is a peaceful species. During the breeding season, a pair may be transferred to separate accommodations.
Description:
Size: 13 cm;41/2 in)
COCK:
Body: olive green. Breast: olive. Under-parts: pale yellowish-green. Forehead: red. Cheeks and throat: red. Tail: brick red. Face and breast spotted with white dots. Beak: red. legs: flesh.
HEN:
Similar, but less red on the face. It is sometimes easy to urns take a young cockbird for a hen, if it has not attained full color, so it is wise to try to obtain a mature, known pair for breeding.
Diet: (Seedeater)
Small plain canary seeds and mixed millet form the basic diet. Greenfood and seed-ing grasses are enjoyed. As the Star Finch does not roost overnight in a nest box, it should be protected from cold and damp weather conditions. Bathing is enjoyed, so a pool should be provided, if possible.
Breeding:
A young hen often flies over her intended mate with a piece of grass in her beak, sometimes dragging it over his back. This is considered to be a preliminary ritual to pair bonding.
Star Finches like to build their nests in broom bushes interwoven with hay, but they do accept a nest box or a wicker basket, in which they will construct a dome-shaped nest of grass with an arrow entrance hole.
Pairs should not be allowed to breed until they are fully mature at just two years of age. If a hen lays fertile eggs before this age, they may be placed under Bengalese. Egg binding is sometimes a problem with Star Finches, particularly if the weather is very cold. They are also inclined to leave the nest frequently instead of sitting on the eggs full time, so it is often very better to place the pair in a flight by themselves to minimize disturbance.
Three to four round white eggs form the normal clutch and both parents incubate them during the day, although the hen usually sits for longer periods than the cock. Both birds occupy the nest at night. The eggs hatch in 12 to 14 days and the young are covered in fine white down. Star Finches are very attentive parents and do not Seel, to resent nest inspection, although this should always be kept to a minimum. The chicks leave the nest at 18 to 23 days and appear to be very shy at this stage. Three or four weeks later they should be independent and removed from their parents to allow for a further round. Immature birds are pale olive brown with a little red on the tail.
The juvenile molt occurs between six weeks and eight months of age depending on how quickly the young mature, weather conditions, and diet.
Although chick-rearing pairs can be fed on hard seeds alone, they benefit from sprouted seeds, egg-rearing food, and insects.
A very strong pair bond is formed by Star Finch couples, so they should be rung with split plastic rings to make sure they are always kept together.
See more: Splendid Grass Parakeet