May be some babies on the way!!!

I'm was hoping that they were Gandhi's, but I'm thinking their Alcs...and if they are they won't hatch. I think Alc has a bit of a fertility issue. I just got that stuff called Nekton-S for my new female star in the other cage that might have a vit-A issue, so I'm going to try to get my boss to order me some Nekton-E. They say those suplaments mixed together really help infertility.

Thats incredible. Almost like a blueprint for babies. Nature really does some amazing things.

But whose eggs are they do you think? Gandhi's or Alcatraz's?

That would be a sight to see, wouldn't it.

Actually, only a few finches will foster another type of finches babies. The most common foster parents are Society Finches...other than the Canary they are the only domesticated finch, and they have never been a wild breed. They will take care of pretty much everything, but most commonly used for Gouldian fosters. The other finches that will tend to others chicks are doing it not because they wanted to take them in, but because they were hoodwinked into it. Whydah finches are "brood-parasitic" and lay their eggs in a host nest. All the Whydah species have a different brood host, but the Pintail seems to be able to use a number of different hosts, from Common Waxbills to Fire Finches.

Baby finches have a reflective patteren inside their beaks that their parents use to know where the mouth is in a dark nest and tell if the babies are "their kind". The brood-parasitic babies have evolved to copy the look of the host babies all the way down to the mouth markings, so the hosts have no clue they are not their own. The only finches that don't care about the marking are the societies.

Wow its like a commune. Sharing the egg responsibilities. I wonder will they share the child rearing too

LOL...I know, right now Alc is in there sitting on them again and the stars are pecking at the cuttle bone.

Well, as long as someone is sitting on them I'm happy.

Lmao! Berna that is just too funny! Potluck! lol Yes now you really have us all, you have to keep us updated!

Hmmm, weird update on the eggs.

Like I said, Gandhi has been sitting on the eggs during the day, and I had seem the female Star hanging around that nest box too, but when I went to turn the lights off last night over the cage Alcatraz and his female (Owl finches) were both in there sitting on them. Thats not Alc's normal nesting box, they are always in the box on the right side of the cage, never in the box on the back. So now I'm wondering what kind of a "pot-luck" I got going on it that box.

Congratulations and definitely keep us posted with pictures please. Good luck!

YAY! Thats so good! My dang finches just sit in the nest and never leave me any eggs...LOL! Just kidding I love them anyways! Congrats!

That is great news Berna! You'll have to keep us posted! And of course we want to see pics when they arrive!!!!

I'm so happy, Gandhi and his new female have eggs! 2 to be exact. I've been noticing that Gandhi had been hanging out around his nest box for the past few days, which is unusual for a star finch...they don't slep in boxes likeother finches, they only stay in if there is a reason. Well, before I went to work I through some more nesting material on the bottom of the cage and when I got home it was all gone and Gandhi was back in the nest. When he flew out to get a quick bite to eat I took a look inside and there are were the eggs. I'm so happy that he is breeding because his last female (buddha) died a few months back and he was heart broken. Now that he has a family on the way I know he and the new girl are fully bonded.