BENGALESE or SOCIETY FINCH (Lonchura domestica)
The Society Finch, as it is called in the United States, ranks equally with the Zebra Finch in popularity and availability, and the price range is similar. It is a good breeder and an ideal foster parent for many of the rarer finches that are not steady enough to be called reliable parents. Society Finches are as good in cages as they are in aviaries and are good breeders either way. They are generally very hardy and sturdy but should not be allowed to breed in unheated aviaries during cold weather. If the climate is too cold, Societies are best kept indoors.
This charming little personality is four and a half inches long including the tail of one and one-half inches. The central tail feathers are tapered to a blunt tip, and the outer feathers have graduated lengths to meet and enhance the central feathers.
The beak is thick and blunt in the mannikin tradition, but the color is variable and may range from dark brown to pinkish-horn color.
Many Societies have a canary type crest. Some are double crested and the writers have seen one specimen with several rosette crests on the sides of the neck and throat. In trying to breed cresteds, it is wiser to breed crested to crest-bred, the latter being non-crested but having one crested parent.
No two Societies are exactly alike in their mottled pattern. Coloring varies from pure white to dark chocolate-brown. The range of color is limited to dark brown, cinnamon, and a deft blend between the two. In most cases, there is a mottled mixture of white, but there are some selfs both in cinnamon and dark brown. Selfs contain no white in their feathers. The shading of cinnamon in some individuals may be diluted slightly.
Pure white Societies are far less attractive than White Zebra Finches because they lack the bright red-orange beaks, feet, and legs. The writers prefer the cinnamon to dark brown shades. Dark browns are dominant to both cinnamon and pure white and are, therefore, far more numerous. Pure white birds, which are recessive to both shades of brown, are somewhat weaker and less prolific than other color varieties. There is a tendency for blindness in whites if they are inbred or if they are not outcrossed frequently with a lightly marked chocolate and white variety.
Sexes can accurately be determined only by behavior. The male sings a squeaky little song to his mate while puffing out his chest and sticking his head high up in the air. This is an amusing little performance punctuated by short but vigorous hops. His tail sticks up at a much sharper clownlike angle during the display.
Close observation to determine sexes, no matter how acute, involves some guesswork. Some are relatively easy, but there are many in-betweens in appearance that defy detection except by behavior. Those which are distinguishable show bolder and more masculine beaks if they are males. Societies prefer nest boxes or covered wicker nests. Incubation is thirteen days. If Societies are to be used as foster parents, the hatching date of the fostered eggs or chicks should coincide as closely as possible with the hatching of their own eggs. Societies are devoted parents, and, if the fledging time of foster chicks should differ from their own, there will be no objection or desertion. Also, they know no nesting season and will go to nest at any time of the year.
The only real problem with the Society Finch is that it is friendly and helpful to a meddlesome degree. When a Society sees another bird preparing a nest, it just naturally wants to assist. When the nest is finished, the Society will help incubate the eggs. The writers have had many Societies which traded nests from day to day with equally friendly Zebra Finches. Shy birds will often desert their nests because of this unwelcome intrusion. Therefore, the wise breeder of rare and shy birds will undoubtedly maintain several pairs of Societies to be used as foster parents in emergencies, but he will house them in a separate aviary or in individual cages.
The Society does not occur in the wild state. Though it is now a distinct and recognized entity, it was evolved by a series of hybridizations which occurred in captivity by the Chinese so long ago that the true parentage is no longer known. There were obviously several Asiatic finches used in the hybridizing. The Sharp Tailed and Striated Mannikins were most likely used, and possibly the Philippine White Breasted Mannikin or a similar subspecies was also used. The general shape of the Society is more similar to the Philippine White Breasted Mannikin than to the Sharp Tailed.