weaver novice!

[geffski]

helo!
just wondered if any one couild give some advice about possible pros and cons
of keeping and breeding weevers!
the aviary is planned to be 100sq ft and heavily planted with bamboo with bird room!
wot would be an atractive species to start out with? somthing that dosnt cost the earth?
how ar ther noise levels?

[laurab]

Hi Geoff

Mine are not that noisy, you only hear them when the cock is displaying, but unfortunately your bamboo will not survive the nest building :-( I had a large bamboo in my aviary last year but sadly had to remove all the 'twigs' this year.

They are great nest builders and it always amazes me as to how quickly a nest can be woven.

Another drawback with the weavers is that they are polygymous and as the cock resembles the hen during its eclipse, you can never be sure of what you are buying and ideally you will need 1 cock and up to at least 3 hens.

They are beautiful during breeding season and amazing to watch and as it is unlikely they will be imported again grab the chance while you can; they do need live food for successful breeding eg. mealworms & wax worms.

Incidently, mine are housed in a mixed aviary with no problems.

[geffski]

wot a star!! thanks for the fast info! be great to see them build a hanging nest!
how about if suitable nesting grasses wher available to them,
could this stop the vandalism? (well help to stop it?) bearing in mind i will probly wont 1 proven pair and 2 spair femals from a diffrent blood line and thats it!
the aviary is planned to be 9ft tall with perhaps 3 bamboos all about 5ft when first planted!

saying the point about no longer being available!
is ther a crack down on imports?
not many breeders?

[chris]

Hi,

red billed quelea are still fairly cheap and easy to come by if you know where to go, and they don't have an eclipse (that i know of) so cocks look different to the hens all year round. also the Ploceus genus of weavers don't have an eclipse, but are difficult to find and even more difficult to be certain of whether you have hens of the same species as the cocks or otherwise (trust me i've had a nightmare of a job with it!)

plants, miscanthus grasses stand up to weavers fairly well, as do reeds but you do need to have LOTS of it. bamboos tend to take a serious beating, but provide great nest sites. climbers such as hops, clematis, russian vine etc. grown up the side of the aviary and inside the aviary also provide cover and possible nest sites. the key to having a planted flight with weavers is a Big flight, LOTS of plants, few weavers (one cock to about every 3x6 foot of dense, tall grasses would probably be about right) and 3 hens to every cock, especially if you are planning on having more than one cock per flight

Chris

[Rogerb]

hi chriss good post mate the miscanthus grasses you mention how tall will they grow and ar the hard to get hold of MR B

[chris]

Hi Roger,

it depends on the species of miscanthus, i have one which barely reaches 18 inches and another which will quite happily make 12 foot! i do have a few potted plants which i can divide etc. if you want one, just means waiting a while. you could always ask paul for a root n shoot of the plant i gave him

Chris;-)

[PAUL HEARN]

Hi Chris,

Just to let you know mate, Red Billed Weavers/Queleas do actually go through an eclipse plumage,;-) although the cocks bill colour remains a deeper red/orange colour than the hens while in eclipse plumage this isn't always a reliable method of sexing of out of colour Red Billed Weavers.

Some hen Red Bills have a yellow bill, but I have also seen a cock Red Bill with a yellow beak.:roll:

Paul.;-)

[Rogerb]

thanks chriss for us the biger the better its for the wevers and the wydas .they love them to build there nests in , thanks for the reply will contact paul ;) MR B

[PAUL HEARN]

Hi Roger,

I have a plant given to me by Chris that you are welcome in having mate.;-)

Paul.

[Rogerb]

thanks paul we will take you up :smile: :smile: :smile: on your offer cheers mate, bugger got the smilys in the wrong place :oops: