Aussie Finch Forum

I was very interested to read Mike Fidler's seed formula in the August monthly read. It included 25% niger. In my experiences over many years, I have experienced a real difficulty in feeding, successfully, niger to finches. As Mike's formula is very successful, with many people very pleased with feeding it, and the results that it brings, am I missing something? What makes the birds eat so much of it? Is it the way it's presented- sprouted, moist compared to dry? Do other finchers have much success with niger? If successful, how is the seed presented?

Murf,what species of finches were you feeding niger to, Craig

Hi Craig, The current crop of finches I have include, star, emblema, plumhead, crimson, pictorella, yellow rump and diamond firetails. My father always mentioned to use niger, but I feel this might have been a throw back to his canary days.

murf wrote:Hi Craig, The current crop of finches I have include, star, emblema, plumhead, crimson, pictorella, yellow rump and diamond firetails. My father always mentioned to use niger, but I feel this might have been a throw back to his canary days.

I have kept and bred all those finches and none of them took to niger,even during the winter but will have a go at it if you grind it up but imo it's not worth the effort.
Siskins and serins and all the canary type finches relish it. Craig

Yes agree. My siskins eat a lot of niger and get a separate bowl of it, but only the Australian grown seed. I also add it to my small grass seed mix for all the finches and some take a little of it.
Imported niger is waste of time - it wont sprout and nothing will eat it.

Thanks guys. Pleased to know it isn't just me. I had been using the Australian niger.

Other than Siskins, canaries & Singers dry niger is largely ignored by virtually all estrildid finches. Some will take it sprouted though. My Parrotfinches love sprouted niger & I've had Stars & Yellowrumps eat it sprouted too. Certainly not an important part of the diet for estrildid species though. Just spent flower heads are readily taken by most green food lovers too (parrotfinches & munias plus all cup-nesters).

If Im not mistaken imported Niger is irradiated and basically dies in the process. Pretty much useless as a feed then. Locally grown seed is the only way to go.

Most of my finches did not take to Niger, but then again that was the dead irradiated seed. I stopped feeding it with no ill effects as I've not found a local source.

I recently bought some Niger which was imported from India as it was all the local produce store had at the time. My siskins are eating it without issue and have done many times in the past. I understand the radiation process kills the germ so the seed wont sprout, but how can it alter the nutritional content of the dry seed?

According to another finch keeper which is also a seed grower, supplier in USA, during the heat treatment some enzymes and nutrients are denatured which reduces the seeds nutritional value.
Treated seed won't harm your birds, live local seed is just more nutritional.