Lady Gouldian Finches
(Chloebia goudiae)

Colors:  Many bird lovers will tell you that the lady Gouldians are the world's most beautiful finch.  The normal males have purple breasts, yellow bellies, and green backs.  The females have a more subdued shade of the same colors.  In recent years, breeders have developed a rainbow of Lady Gould mutations.  Mutations such as white-breasted, yellow-headed, rose breasted, blue breasted, blue bodied, and white bodied have been developed and the list grows.

Then there are those who regard the brilliance of coloring on this little bird as being so striking as to be garish.... I don't get that one!?
My special little Blue Boy.

 

Temperature Requirements:  Gouldian's inhabit the dry eucalyptus savannas (tropical or sub-tropical grassland)  in the  hottest parts of Australia.  They need to be kept at 77 degrees F or warmer and also require a high air humidity of 55 to 70%, temperatures should never drop past 65 degrees..  I keep an iguana heater in the cage during the winter months, this provides heat if they need to seek it and produces no light.
 

If drafts are harmful to other birds they are certainly a killer to Goulds.  Cages or aviaries are best closed on at least one side and many successful breeders have only an open front to the flight.
 

Flight Requirements:  Goulds require a great deal of activity to stay fit and often suffer from metabolic problems if they do not get enough exercise. It is also said that they seem to like taking off in an upward flight rather than horizontally, thus the cage should  accommodate this tendency.
 

Diet:  Diet in the wild is predominately sorghum seeds.  They also eat termites, beetles and spiders and live on an exclusive diet of these during the breeding season.    In captivity they require a large amount of protein especially during molt. 
 

A complete diet is certainly required and a  total seed diet is not good for any bird.  I have finally converted my birds to a pellet diet and also continue to offer them fruits and vegetable,  only offering seeds  for occasional treats.   The great side effect of a pellet diet other than health,  as most people know, is getting rid of the seed shell mess.
 
Breeding Hints:  Gouldian breeders will tell you that they hatch out many more males than females as a fact of Gouldian breeding.  Robert G. Black, a finch expert, reports that after he installed full spectrum lighting in his Gouldian area, he went from producing mostly males to producing a bit more than half females. 

People will also tell you to pair off breeding pairs as they do other species of finches, however since Goulds spur each other's mating instinct it is desirable to keep several pairs together.  They get along well with each other and with other exotic finches. 

Goulds are not good nest makers.  In the wild they adopt abandoned brooding caves left by parakeets or if they are forced to build a nest they do not line it.  Therefore the keeper needs to provide both the nest and the nesting material in captivity.  Coconut fibers are a favorite of the Goulds for nesting.   They prefer covered nest boxes and since they usually copulate within the nest box it needs to be larger than other finch boxes. 

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