Abstract
African Silverbill, Lonchura (Eodice)
cantans, also known as the Warbling
Silverbill; Order Passeriformes, Family
Estrildidae. They average 11 centimeters
in length. They are light sandy
brown, darker brown on the wings
and tail , and cream colored on their
belly and tail coverts. There are four
subspecies indigenous to West and
Central Africa, they live in savannas,
farmlands, and near villages. They are
not dimorphic.
It is virtually impossible, in fact, to
distinguish between the sexes until
the chicks reach four months of age, at
which time the male will begin to sing
and display courtship behavior. This
behavior may be only singing while
bouncing up and down. It may even
include what I call the "grass ceremony",
which is singing and bouncing
while holding a piece of grass in
his bill.
Silverbills usually breed at eight to
10 months of age. Both the cock and
the hen build the nest. He chooses
and brings the nesting material to the
hen, who arranges it to her liking. I
have found Silverbills favor freshly cut
strands of Bermuda grass three inches
or longer, however they will also use
Bermuda hay, leaves, pieces of cottonballs,
or other grasses that grow in
the ir aviary. They seem to prefer the
larger woven baskets (you can purchase
them in any pet or feed store) to
any other type of natural or man made
housing. They a lso seem to prefer
nesting in the open , where they can
observe what's going on in the aviary,
unlike Red-cheeked Cordon Bleus,
who prefer to hide their nests from
prying eyes.
I have observed Silverbills mate for
life, rather than only for the breeding
season. Also, they are very attentive to
their mates, doing everything together
from eating to sitting in the sun. It is
very amusing to watch them preen
each other, although the cock may
pull feathers from the hen during
mating.
I have noticed Silverbills, unlike
some other finches , do not molt
annually. The feathers are replaced as
they wear out, the only heavy molt
they experience is their adult molt
which happens between six to eight
months of age.
Although not as brightly colored as
some finches imported from that area,
they have a beautiful song (a testament
to this is part of their name, cantans),
and they are not aggressive,
which makes them an excellent addition
to anyone's aviary. Silverbills are
also extremely hardy and can, therefore,
be raised without much difficulty
by even beginning aviculturists.
The hen lays four to six eggs per
clutch, and has about five clutches per
season. It would be wise, however, to
limit them to three clutches if at all
possible to have healthier young. Both
parents take turns incubating the eggs,
which hatch in 14 to 17 days. It has
been said that with Silverbills, nest
monitoring is not possible. I find that
to be untrue, at least with my birds. I
admit, however, I don't monitor my
nests more than once daily, usually in
the morning while both parents are
away from the nest.
Silverbills are excellent parents and,
a lthough I have heard they can be
used as foster pare nts, I cannot substantiate
this as I am against using any
bird to raise the offspring of another. I
do know, however, that Silve rbills
stuff their chicks more like Societies or
Zebras than an African waxbill.