In Australia, the Pytilia family of finches are popular members of many collections. Most finch breeders confidently talk about Melbas, (green winged Pytilias), Auroras (Red Winged Pytilias), the Yellow Winged Pytilias, which have yellow wings and a red head, but seem to struggle on the details when it comes to the black sheep of [...]

Star Finch
(neochmia ruficadua)
Found across Northern Australia from the Pilbara, Western Australia to Cape York. The Star Finch species is well established in Australian aviculture. Although there are probably several sub-species of this finch, the birds we keep are probably a mixture of some from the west and some from the [...]

I got a question via email the other day:
Hello. I am enquiring about purchasing some gouldian finches but have been informed that it is too cold to keep/breed them in an outdoor aviary in Sydney. I would appreciate your opinion. Thank you.
My first thought was to say try it and see. But this [...]

Of all the birds I keep I do not colony breed. With the exception of two pair of Gouldians per flight everything else is bred in single pairs. This is not to say colonies don’t work, it is saying it is not necessary.
The example is that if you have five pairs of a particular species [...]

When brushing an aviary the brush can be attached in may different ways and usually every bird breeder has their own way of doing this. I use a variety of methods, the first of which I will describe below:
The Poly Pipe Fastening Method:

To use the brush in this way you need the following tools and [...]

I received this email from a user of this website, and I thought it would be a great idea for a quick post. Here is the email:
I’ve been into breeding finches before but have always had timber built aviaries with the old asbestos roofing. I don’t want to use these materials again therefore I am [...]

I have kept finches for over 30 years but seriously since 1984 when I moved to Broken Head, NSW.I am a finch breeder and that’s all I keep. I always try to improve whatever species I choose to breed because this is what I believe all true bird breeders should aspire to do.
The [...]

Is there a more beautiful finch than the Gouldian? An old friend of mine said they must have been the most beautiful creature ever created and I tend to agree.
This is the time of the year when you start to see the results of the past breeding season. The birds are partly through the moult [...]

These birds are one of my favourite finches. I have always had them. The yellow beak defines them from the eastern race, the Hecks Longtail with its somewhat stronger tones of colour and the distinctive red beak. I do not keep the Hecks as I find I need as much room as possible to keep [...]