Gouldian Finches are about 130140 mm long. Both sexes are brightly coloured with black, green, yellow, red and other colours. The females tend to be less brightly coloured. This is thought to be so that they are less noticeable when sitting in a nest, while a colourful male can distract predators away from the nest, thereby ensuring the survival of the young.
One major difference between the sexes is that the male's chest is purple, while the female's is a lighter mauve colour.
Gouldian Finches' heads may be red, black, or yellow Juveniles have distinctive colours. Their heads, sides and necks are grey, and their backs, wings and tail feathers are olive green. Their undersides are pale brown. Beaks are blackish with a reddish tip. Very young birds also have blue, shiny structures on the sides of their beaks to help their parents see them in the dark.
The Gouldian Finch has declined rapidly in numbers in its native habitats in the Northern territory and the North of Western Australia from many tens of thousands less than 30 years ago to around 2,500 birds in total today.
Several organisations have combined resources to attempt to fully understand what has caused the rapid decline of the Gouldian Finch including the Save the Gouldian Fund, the Australian Wild Life Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund (Australia) among others.
The Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) is listed as an Endangered species under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC). STGF has an extensive history working to protect this flagship species from extinction.
Background
Gouldian finches are small, brightly coloured seed-eating birds restricted to the northern savannas of Australia.
Prior to European settlement they ranged from Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, through the northern half of the Northern Territory to the Kimberley Region of Western Australia.
Discovered and named by the renowned English Ornithologist, John Gould, in the last 50 years their population has contracted substantially with the species being recorded reliably at only a small number of sites in the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
Today, there are only approximately 2,500 individuals present in the wild.
The most significant and immediate threat to the Gouldian finch is the changed fire pattern since European colonisation. Historically, local Indigenous communities would manage the country by doing smaller, managed burn offs. Today, large scale, late dry season wildfires sweep through vast tracts of land devastating both the important Cockatoo Grass and Curly Spinifex the two main food sources in the Gouldians diet during the wet.
Importantly, fire also affects seed productivity in these key wet season grasses creating a resource bottleneck which given the restricted diet of the Gouldian, combined with their essential annual lifecycle, makes them particularly vulnerable.
Grazing
Key wet season grasses that Gouldians depend upon cockatoo grass and golden beard grass are also selectively grazed by cattle and horses. Feral pigs have also been shown to impact dramatically on vegetation loss further eroding or degrading food sources for the Gouldian.
The current recovery plan comprises the following activities:
- Preliminary: April 2008 region/properties identified; contact with land managers established and land manager support obtained; selection of focal area for project
- June 2008 financial support for project begins (until June 2010)
- July 2008 Gouldian finch coordinator employed
- September 2008 Gouldian finch survey work at key waterholes throughout region to gather baseline population numbers.
- November 2008 commence analysis of population data
- December 2008 reporting and preliminary update to project sponsors and stakeholders
- February 2009 all fire management planning with region has been undertaken and agreed to
- April 2009 implementation of fire management regime
- June 2009 fire management plan has been implemented throughout region; project update to sponsors and stakeholders
- September 2009 Gouldian finch waterhole counts
- November 2009 analysis of data and satellite fire maps
- December 2009 reporting and project update to sponsors and stakeholders;
- April 2010 implementation of fire management regime
- June 2010 project update to sponsors and stakeholders; planning for project sustainability beyond June 2011
- September 2010 Gouldian finch waterhole counts
- November 2010 analysis of population data and satellite fire maps
- December 2010 reporting and project update to sponsors and stakeholders
- April 2011 final implementation of fire management regime
- June 2011 final report to all stakeholders, including production of a DVD, key statistics and photographs;
Exetel completed its contracted support towards saving the Gouldian Finch on 31st January 2010. Any Exetel customer who wishes to continue to make donations should do so directly with either the WWF or the Save The Gouldian Foundation.
Detailed Species Information
http://www.austmus.gov.au/factsheets/gouldian_finch.htm