The Black and White Mannikin
(Lonchura bicolor)

by Jim Warburton

When I was a youngster and you could take your girlfriend out to the cinema, buy ice-creams, 20 cigarettes get the bus home and still have change from 5 shillings, whoops I'm sounding like my Dad here, I obtained my first L.bicolors.

Often described in dealers and pet shop listings as, Fernando Po, Blue-billed or Rufous-backed the usual species you will discover for sale will be the Blue-billed or Black and White Mannikin Lonchura bicolor
Description, Black above this having a distinct greenish sheen, flanks are Black but are striped with White scalloping, and the under-parts are white, another feature is two or three small white spots on the innermost tertials on the wing.

Rarely imported now or seen is the true Fernando Po, L. b.poensis and these vary from L.bicolor
by having white spots on the outer edges of the primary feathers and basal outer edges of the secondaries giving a barred effect to the base of the flight feathers, the white flank scalloping is also broader than L.bicolor.
The Rufous-backed L.b. nigriceps is the same as L.b.poensis except the mantle, back and wing coverts and parts of the secondaries are Rufous or Chestnut in colour, this bird has become more common in dealers and pet shops recently.

You can see more pictures of these birds at http://homepage.ntlworld.com/lonchura/page42.html

Over 40 years I have kept many of these birds of all the known sub-species but it’s only in the last 10 years I have made any effort to induce them to reproduce finally with some degree of success. On a visit to a bird dealer, I noticed that in a flight of several hundred L.bicolor’s that there were several birds in juvenile plumage and I decided to purchase them, I took home 15 birds. On arriving home I placed them in a large indoor flight along with a dozen young Bengalese that had just been weaned to settle down and moult through, watching them to try to determine if I could what sexes they were. I provided them with exactly the same diet as their companions the Bengalese, my usual mixture being 25kgs of White Millet mixed with 25kgs of basic Budgerigar mixture, in other words a 50/50 mixture with a separate dish during winter months of Paddy Rice. Once a week a bunch of Chinese millet sprays, and up until moulting was completed Sluis Egg-Food plus daily, and of course cuttlebone and Oyster-shell grit at all times, and usually when I could find it chickweed from the garden. These birds soon imitated the Bengalese and began sampling the Egg-food and eating everything provided and although not rock steady became reasonably so.

Over the course of 3 to 4 months I had reached the conclusion I had 9 definite cock birds and hopefully 6 hens, as I discovered a singing bird I used my old water pistol trick, squirt the singer then just catch up the wet one for the addition of a split plastic ring to identify it as a cock bird. As April approached I began planning to try to persuade 3 pairs to go to nest, and so I set up 2ft breeding cages with internal boxes stuffed a bit of meadow hay inside and after choosing my pairs installed them in the cages. They were soon occupying the nest boxes but seemed to make no attempt at nest building, even though I had supplied additional materials for the purpose, I learnt later that they build roosting nests as a matter of course in the wild, so nest box interest doesn't mean breeding will follow. But they ate the egg-food and seemed in great condition but after my initial enthusiasm I ignored them to concentrate on my other species. One morning I noticed a cock bird busy picking up bits of coconut fibre dropping from a cage above where a pair of Bengalese were busy nest building, and presenting it to his hen who appeared to be constructing a nest. Wasting no time I quickly provided them with a handful of coconut fibre and as the day progressed several more bunches disappeared into the box, I was filled with anticipation and went to sleep with young mannikins flying in and out of my dreams.

After several days it was impossible to glimpse the cup of this nest, the nest was woven so tight and the entrance so small that I had no hope of discovering if it contained anything at all, but as the days progressed the hen disappeared all day emerging occasionally to deposit massive droppings take a drink have a quick snack and then back to the nest. I worked out the date I thought any eggs would hatch and carefully began listening for any evidence of chicks, I provided egg-food daily and small white mealworms which began to be taken by both birds, but 7 days after I guessed the eggs would have hatched my pair were again courting and ignoring the box for much of the day.

On examining the nest I discovered 3 eggs that on breaking had dried up and were infertile, still a young pair I told myself inexperienced, better luck next time, but that year next time never came. My only luck was two eggs found on the floor of the flight I kept my remaining birds in placed under a Bengalese pair produced 2 chicks that turned out to be Bengie x Black & White Mannikin hybrids.

The following year I had retained only the pair that attempted to bred the year before and one other pair that had a strong pair bond, with the intention of giving them another go. These four birds lived in an indoor flight 5ft long 2ft deep and 3ft high, I had included 4 nest boxes as they liked to roost in them and would disappear into them whenever I entered the birdroom. I had begun to condition my birds for breeding by providing egg-food twice a week, I had several pairs of Cordons and Blue Caps that after over-wintering I had given to a friend, this left me with 5 trays of mealworm cultures that were very productive. So my lonchura species that enjoyed them received them daily and I still had plenty, my L.bicolor’s were eating a couple a day but showed no great enthusiasm for them, but still they received some daily.

As March finished I thought to leave both pairs in this flight and provide nest materials, I was surprised to see both pairs busily constructing nests on opposite sides of the flight. As the weeks passed I felt sure eggs where being incubated but held no great hopes for much from this set up, imagine my surprise to notice that now the mealworms disappeared and the egg-food went as well, curiosity might have killed the cat but I just had to look, taking my dentist mirror and a torch I quickly looked into box one looking back were a bunch of gapes, box two was occupied by both birds so I retreated rubbing my hands like Fagin.

From these two pairs I raised 17 youngsters and they would have kept going but I removed the boxes, it took all my powers of observation to identify which chicks came from which pair as I was to cautious to ring them in the nest.

After that I began to breed them in cages on a regular basis, and decided that these birds need to know that livefood is available as a component in bringing them into breeding condition.

So get juveniles, I never yet managed to breed from trapped adults, provide livefoods as an aid to breeding condition, your birds may not take any but I think it needs to be available.

Breeding the commonly imported Lonchura is challenging but satisfying, in the end though until they are no longer available in great numbers for low prices you will get no thanks for your efforts, very few fanciers will pay above dealers prices for captive bred specimens so I rise to the challenge for personal satisfaction and then move on to another one.