spice finch? mannikan? crossbreed?

An area to ask about species that are not Native to Australia.
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starman
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Hi Jonno,

I would not argue against White-rumped but would agree maybe hybridized ...mainly because I can not detect any white behind the wings
(not well shown in pics) and also can not see any of the fine striations in the lateral neck areas of the typical White-rump. Perhaps this is due to the fact that these birds may be juveniles and might moult out into something more identifiable. It will be interesting to learn of their origins ...if we should be that lucky?

Self confessed NON-expert,
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escapin
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Here's a few more pics of them. Similar body size and thickness to a silverbill but with a mannikan sized beak
spice.jpg
spice2.jpg
spicey.jpg
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arthur
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First new pic has Spice Finch written all over it

Did you find out the possible ticket-holders in the paternity / maternity raffle?
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starman
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Those new pics provide a few more clues. I really like this little bird....it looks very neatly feathered,clean and healthy.
To me its appearance is very 'Silverbillish' ie: the large, soft, doe-like eyes, the base colouring, the bill colouring and the body shape are all typically Silverbill, but it has 'generic' munia features that (to me) suggest hybridisation. The white-edged feathers on the rump are not typically Silverbill ( I have been assured recently that the Indian Silverbill no longer exists in Australian aviculture) and so would be looking for a donor of that feature and of the rudimentary scaley patterned breast feathers. Perhaps some one who knows which munias are currently available in Australian aviaries can reference Robin Restall's "Munias and Mannikins" and expose the most likely candidates.

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finches247
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There are many subspecies of Spice Finch but I don't which ones are in Australia it doesn't have a lot scalloping on the breast though to be full Spice and White Rumped Munia have a blacker face and throat not brown.
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finchbreeder
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As a Lonchura fan with little expertise I can only say they are nice little finch, and until you know otherwise I would refer to them as Lonchura hybrids.
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Tiaris
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I'd bet on Pictorella being one parent. The other is more difficult to pin point. I very cautiously tend toward silverbill slightly more than spice because a pictorella spice combo should have far more extensive scalloping & this bird has less than either a pictorella or a spice, which strongly suggests a non-scalloped species as one parent. The white stripes on the rump suggests something other than silverbill & is actually quite rufous-backed mannikinish - the white-belly and relatively small size would also be consistent with rufous-backed but I imagine a RBM hybrid would have a much darker head area than these. The white on rump plus very dark tail also possibly suggests something in the peophila genus, perhaps masked. The shape of the facial darker are in the more recent pic would be consistent with masked but again you'd think the head would be much darker than shown. Bottom-line - dunno.
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starman
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escapin, do you have any idea as to the age of these birds?...?juvenile or adult plumage.

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escapin
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My mate bought them off a gumtree ad. Ad simply read "Zebs and nutmegs for sale. Bring a box or cage and catch your own". He said it was an old fella who didnt seem to have much clue at all.

He said there was another 4 of them in the aviary, all looked the same. All looked the same, so I am guessing they arent that young... but also arent super old as their toenails/feet etc are all nice and tidy

When I saw them I said they arent nutmeg/spice finches. Looked odd, but have a nice character and chirp. New home in with my Red Zebs.
Wonder if they'll breed? If they do it will have to be with their own kind, or zebs :roll:
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Craig52
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starman wrote:escapin, do you have any idea as to the age of these birds?...?juvenile or adult plumage.

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Not juvenile going by the scaly legs of an older bird in the last pic. Craig
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