Starfinches are a popular finch and great for people who want to breed as they are a free breeder which means they will breed all year round.
Clutch size- 4 to 6 eggs, star finches are good parents and have good fertility with a low mortality rate. These birds are not a difficult species to breed. repetitive nest breeding is common and they will breed in a variety of places from whicker nests and sometimes will breed in finch nest boxes. During nesting these birds will use a variety of nesting material such as nesting grass, swamp grass, coconut fibre and white feathers. All of which is available at birdsville.
Stars are reasonably strong and healthy birds. A good dry drought free aviary and clean good quality food is probably the best way of maintaining healthy birds. One of the most important health tips anyone can get is to keep your water dishes clean.
These birds are generally strong healthy birds but they should be wormed 4 times a year.
introducing new birds into the flock- place in a small cage next to of inside the aviary for 2 weeks to allot the birds to get used to each other.
Feeding
Seed– Supply your birds with a good quality seed mix. Be careful of some super market mixes as the quality of seed is quite low and this will decrease the health and breeding capacity if your birds.
Sprouted seed– Always rinse thoroughly with aviclens before feeding to your birds
Millet sprays– A fresh seed still attached to the stem there are a number of millet sprays available we recommend french white millet sprays to be the best for star finches.
Greens– Endives, seeding grasses, bok choy, broccoli, chick weed and lebanese cucumber
Live food– such as meal worms and fly pupae with some wombaroo insectivore mix added
Egg and Biscuit formula– Great protein source especially when birds are feeding young this can be added to live food above
Grit is essential for breeding and the health of your birds, we recommend a shell grit mix that contains limestone, charcoal, crushed baked egg shell and crushed cuttlebone. Never mix grit and seed together, place grit in a separate dish.
Vitamin supplement– this is important and mst be added through the water supply. Vitamins added to seed is wasted in the hulling process as they do not consume the outside of the seed and is rendered useless
The views and opinions on this site are based on my own experiences
