Ask Lafeber

Zebrafinch aggression in males

I work with zebrafinches, what causes aggression in male zebrafinch birds? I was always told that zebrafinches are mostly friendly birds with low levels of aggression. We have a very large flight cage, plenty of perches, plenty of food and water and cuttle bones in the cage but 1 bird who has a history of splay leg that the other males are pecking on the bird so much so they caused numerous wounds on the birds back. We had to separate out the bird to treat. Is this an abnormal behavior, is there anything we can do to stop this behavior when he is returned back to the cage. For context there is a large flight cage of females nearby. Or should he just be housed in a small setup with 1 or 2 other male birds?

Hi,

It’s normal for a flock of birds to attack an injured, sick or debilitated flock member. They are a prey species, and a bird like that can attract the attention of predators. He should be separated with only one other bird that he gets along with. You should not have an odd number of birds in a cage, to keep the peace. Even in a same sex cage, they will tend to pair off and pick on the odd bird. Also, never introduce nests to a flock, even same sex. Nests trigger hormones and nesting behavior, and this can result in territorial fighting. Even the more passive of birds can be extremely aggressive when it comes to nesting and territory. Nests should only be given to breeding pairs, during breeding season, and there should only be one pair per cage. While I know you are not breeding, this is to give you a better understanding of what can cause fighting. It’s best to have a feeding station for each bird, plus one extra. This helps discourage fighting over food.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda