Gouldian Finch

Looks how to spot one

Feathered; small grassfinch with a short seed-eating bill and a pointed tail

One of the most colourful small birds kept anywhere. It has a grass-green back and wings, a purple chest, a golden-yellow belly and a sky-blue rump, with a black tail that ends in two fine points. The face is a mask of black, red or yellow edged with a thin band of turquoise. Cocks are the brighter sex, with a deep purple chest and longer tail points, while hens wear softer, paler tones. Young birds start out a plain greyish green and gain their adult colours over their first months.2467

Personality what they are like

Gouldian finches are calm, alert and friendly with other birds, and they settle well in groups. They are birds to enjoy watching rather than holding, so they are happiest when left to go about their day without being handled. They like a steady routine and a calm room. Only the males sing, a soft, quiet song.786

Daily activity how busy a day looks

They get their exercise by flying, so give them a long flight cage or a planted aviary where they can fly from end to end. Perches of soft wood and natural branches placed at either end encourage flight.78

Grooming and care the hands-on bits

They love to splash, so offer a clean, shallow saucer of water for bathing or mist them gently. Keep them in a warm, draught-free spot, at around 21-24 °C (70-75 °F) according to one breeder guide, and keep their routine steady. They are usually described as a little more delicate than zebra or society finches and better suited to keepers who have some finch experience.87

Home where they are happiest

Use a roomy flight cage, one breeder suggests about 51 cm long as a starting point, or better still a large planted aviary. Bar spacing should be no wider than about 1.3 cm (half an inch). Add natural branch perches and a nest box if you plan to breed them, and place the cage in a warm room away from draughts.78

Food basics what goes in the bowl

In the wild they eat almost nothing but grass seeds, such as sorghum and speargrass. Pet birds do well on a quality finch seed mix or pellet base, with millet spray, egg food, fresh greens such as spinach, parsley and dandelion, some vegetables and fruit, and a cuttlebone for calcium. Small live foods are useful during breeding, when their protein needs go up.2578

Company who they like around

A social flock bird, best kept as a pair or in a group. They share large aviaries happily with other peaceful finches such as society and zebra finches, but should not be housed with pushier birds like weavers and whydahs. Pairs often stay together for a long time.783

The story where it all began

English naturalist John Gould described the bird for science in 1844 as Amadina gouldiae. Some sources give 1841 or 1845. He named it after his wife, the artist Elizabeth Gould, who had died shortly before. For a long time the black-, red- and yellow-faced birds were thought to be separate species, but they are now known to be colour forms of the same bird. Gouldians once lived in flocks numbering hundreds of thousands across northern Australia, and early in the twentieth century wild birds were trapped in large numbers for bird keepers. Australia later stopped trapping and exports: the government conservation advice says large-scale trapping ended about three decades before 1999, while WWF-Australia dates the ban to the 1980s. Birds already abroad founded the captive populations now kept around the world, and fanciers went on to breed many new breast and body colours. In the wild the species is now protected, and it is the focus of conservation work across the Kimberley and the Northern Territory, including in Kakadu, Nitmiluk and Limmen National Parks.176452

Recognised by the official bits

EPBC Act 1999 (Australian Government)

Wild population listed as Endangered at national level.4

Northern Territory Government

Listed as Vulnerable in the Northern Territory.2

IUCN Red List

Sources differ: WWF-Australia gives Near Threatened, while Wikipedia gives the current category as Least Concern.5

The British Gouldian Finch Club

A UK specialist club for keeping, breeding and exhibiting Gouldian finches and their colour mutations.6

How many About 2,400 mature birds in the wild (expert estimate), with an effective population size of about 1,600 from a genetic study in 2016. Other sources round this to fewer than 2,500.453