Bird Profile: Plum Headed Finch

The Plum Headed Finch (Neochmia modesta) is more commonly known as the Cherry Finch in aviculture and is a common estrildid finch from Australia.  It is of the same finch family as the Star Finch. 

Cherry Finch sunbathing with a Zebra Finch

Natural Environment

In the wild, these little birds live in the dry savannah and dry shrubland areas of Australia, where it is a species of Least Concern.  It lives across Northern Queensland south to the interior areas of eastern Australia and New South Wales.

The Plum Headed finch generally is a bit nomadic and travels around searching for food and water.  Residents of the areas have often reported them being around in large numbers then vanishing for a period before abruptly reappearing.

Their natural diet are the seeds of the plants they live amongst and in captivity, this translates to a good foreign finch seed mixture.  They will appreciate live food such as mealworms and will also relish a range of fresh food such as greens like kale or spinach, fruit and vegetables.  Plum headed finches enjoy bathing so as well as having access to fresh drinking water, they should have somewhere to enjoy a good, clean bath every day.

Getting to know

Sexing can be easier than with some finches as the male has a dark spot below the beak that is not on the female’s throat.  Sometimes, the plum headed patch is larger on the males than females.  There are three main colours; the normal bird where the head is plum coloured, the back and wings are brown with white flecks and the breast and belly are white and brown striped.  The tail has brown and white barring a little like a zebra finch.  The other two mutations are the fawn, where all colours are dilute and the Isabel, which is lighter again and the breast barring is almost dark cream.

Keeping Plum Headed finches in a mixed aviary is probably an ideal environment.  While genetically they can cross with Star Finches, I don’t know anyone who this has happened to but they do live happily with them.  I have four Plums in my mixed collection with six Star Finches as well as other Australian and African finches.  They are sociable, often preening other nearby birds when preening themselves and share the feed stations well with others.

While no finch ever becomes truly tame, Plums are one of the finches that can get a level of trust in their human keepers and befriend you.  One of my birds in particular will come each morning for the first grab of food from my hand and is hard to dislodge so I can feed the others!  He even comes to the door on an evening if he feels a little extra food should be provided or flies at me to prompt me.

That is not to say that they cannot be kept in an indoor aviary, a large cage or even a breeding cage.  Much of their adaptability will come from what they have been raised in – if in a cage then a cage is nothing new to them.  But if raised in an aviary, then a cage may be a bit of a shock.

Nesting

In the wild, these finches build a small domed nest that tends to be slightly taller than wider and it made with grasses.  It doesn’t have an entrance tunnel and is often lined with feathers.  They choose a nesting spot that is near the ground, often amongst dense shrubbery and near live grasses to construct with.

A typical clutch is between 4-6 eggs and both parents share in the incubation duties during the day, both sleeping in the nest on a night.  They hatched around 12-14 days and are ready to fledge at around 21 days.  While not as nervous on the nest as some of their Star Finch cousins, it is best to avoid disturbing them.

In captivity, they will easily use a nesting box and fill it with nesting materials such as jute, coconut fibre, sisal and such.  They will also build their own nests as they would in the wild when the right conditions are present.