Ask Lafeber

Do female zebra finches make noise?

PLEASE HELP! I bought a pair of zebra finches and I thought I heard both making noise (that squeaky toy noise) and I had remembered hearing somewhere that it’s the males only that make noise, does this mean i have 2 males, the female looks like a female (she has no cheek patches, barely any markings except for a single short black horizontal line on her chest/Breast area. Please let me know if she is female or if I’ve been given 2 males by mistake. ( these weren’t dna tested so they were just picked based on the fact that the “female” doesn’t have the cheek patches or zebra stripes on breast. And the male was picked because he has orange cheek patches and lots of markings. PLEASE HELP. Do i have a pair, or have i bought 2 males by mistake?

Hi Gustavo,

Both sexes will vocalize because they call back and forth to each other. However, I don’t think the female normally has the chest marking. If these are babies, both birds may not have the adult color yet. You should Google images for zebra finches and compare them. Unless you plan to breed them, it is fine if you have 2 males. If you are planning to breed them, you need to wait until both birds are at least a year old. Do not give them a nest unless you plan to breed them, and do not give it to them until they are old enough. They only need a nest when they are breeding, and it should be removed when the chicks are weaned, and not given back for several months or the parents will over breed.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda