The Australian zebra finch or chestnut-eared finch is the most common estrildid finch of Central Australia. It ranges over most of the continent, avoiding only the cool humid south and some areas of the tropical far north. The bird has been introduced to Puerto Rico and Portugal.
Ideal housing for zebra finches is a large flight cage, or an aviary for housing finches — they will appreciate the space. Finches are not long-lived birds, living only about 3 to 5 years, and if you're really lucky, a bit beyond.
Zebra finches can live up to 5 years in the wild (Zann 1996), and the oldest individuals in our captive population are 8 years old (C. Bech, B.
Many of these birds recognize their owners' faces and voices and respond with happy chirps and peeps. These finches are excellent choices for owners concerned about noise and limited space and typically live on average seven to ten years.
LIFE CYCLE: Finches can live 15 to 20 years, but the more common lifespan is probably five to 10. FEEDING: This finch spends most of its time foraging above ground, looking for insect larvae — its favorite prey.
Even though they are social with each other, zebra finches do not bond strongly with people. They may become tame, but do not relish handling. With much training, you may get it to come to your hand. When it comes to vocalization, the bird emits quiet chirps and peeps that are easy to tolerate.
Cage Cleaning
Replace the substrate as often as needed. Replace furnishings and dishes when they wear out. If your finches interact with toys, rotate new toys into the habitat to keep your birds mentally engaged. They may enjoy small bells and hanging toys, although many finches don't pay much attention to toys.
If you don't supply your finch with a new companion at the end of that week he/she may indeed appear to still be depressed. This is normal. Not so much that he/she is still mourning the loss, rather the finch is simply lonely. In time and if you are around more often the finch may perk up and appear happier.
Finches must never be kept alone. They are extremely sociable birds and need partners of their own species. If deprived of companions (whether their own species or not) they will suffer loneliness and possibly sickness.
Covering the cage at night is unnecessary and discouraged since exposure to fresh air is important,2,5 and the birds ideally should rise with the sun (having a covered cage early in the morning may prevent this).
Budgerigars and zebra finches can grasp the very basics of grammar, making them one of the only non-human species to exhibit such a high level of abstract thought.
These petite birds are robust, easy to care for, and demand little attention. They are often housed collectively in large, attractive aviaries. Some finches have a strong territorial nature and a social pecking order that may lead to aggression between individuals.
Can Finches Be Kept Alone? Much like humans, finches don't do well alone. You must keep them in pairs. However, if you have six or more finches housed together, they will be more social and probably won't exclude any of the other finches.
Life in captivity is often a death sentence for birds, who may suffer from malnutrition, an improper environment, loneliness, and the stress of confinement. Birds are meant to fly and be with others of their own kind in a natural environment. Confinement causes birds to have temper tantrums and mood swings.
Zebra Finches make the perfect subjects for such an investigation, because they're monogamous birds that often mate for life, sharing nesting and offspring rearing duties (though they're also known to enjoy an occasional midnight rendezvous with a sultry neighboring finch).
Birds can use cuttlebones to help keep their beaks trimmed and sharp. Even finches and canaries will often improve their beak health if you provide them with cuttlebone.
In the cage, have two food and water bowls, as well as shallow bowl for your finches to bathe in. Provide stimulation in the form of companionship as well as foraging toys—places where you can hide seeds and other treats for your birds to find and get out.
Zebra finches should always have access to clean, fresh water. In general, birds should always have access to some form of calcium. Usually cuttlefish bone and/or sea shells are very popular, but so are egg shells from regular chickens.
You should keep more than one finch.
While a finch certainly won't die from being alone, she will be quite unhappy. Kristy Coury from Finches by Kristy said, “Finches should never be kept as a solitary animal. They always need to be kept as two or more as they are very social.”
Emilie Perez, a researcher at the University of Saint-Etienne in France, and her colleagues found in 2012 that the calls of stressed-out male zebra finches sound slightly different than usual. Not unlike a frantic human whose voice creeps higher and higher, a stressed male finch calls with a higher frequency.
Biting, hissing, lunging, and excessive screaming are all signs to watch out for. Fear – While not all birds are outwardly friendly, if your bird suddenly becomes timid and avoids being handled, this could be a sign that your feathered friend is stressed.
According to another a study published in the journal Animal Behaviour, ravens which include crows, jays and magpies, have the ability to 'hold grudges' for up to two years.
Start by holding your hand near the cage while you talk or whistle soothingly to your birds. Once they seem unflustered by its presence (this will take a few days, and you can't rush it), gently stroke your hand up and down the bars. This will get the finches used to a hand that both moves and makes a noise.
(A) Zebra finches (n = 6) spent significantly higher amounts of time facing the mirror during both mirror exposure and mirror test trials compared to facing a board of similar dimensions (control), suggesting that there was an increase in attention paid toward their reflections.