Page last updated: 18 June 2020 (website last updated: 26 July 2020)

Welcome to the Waxbill Finch Society's website

WFS members' 2019 breeding returns

Many thanks to all members who submitted their returns to Neil Bickell. These have now been collated and incorporated into the website on both the  Species Profiles  and  Breeding Returns  pages.

Covid-19: WFS 2020 Annual General Meeting POSTPONED

This year's AGM that was scheduled to take place on Saturday 20 June has been postponed. The national emergency that has arisen from the spread of Coronavirus/ Covid-9 has meant that the club needs to think of the welfare of its members before all else. We will look into rescheduling the AGM as and when it is safe to do so.

The 03 May event of the South-East branch has also been cancelled for the same reasons. We will look at the situation for any future meetings - including those of the Northern and South-East branches. We are sorry for any inconvenience.

Buying/ selling birds at WFS stands

WFS members are being invited to buy/ sell their birds through WFS stands at Stafford/ Warwickshire/ Cambridge/ Newark bird sales. The offer is driven by one of the core aims of our society to ‘help members locate, exchange, purchase or sell stock’.
Full details on the  For Sale  page.

WFS badges now available

We're pleased to add Waxbill Finch Society badges to the list of items we offer on PayPal. They're available for £4 each (free postage in the UK) and can be found on the  WFS booklets  page.

2019 Target Species

Following the 2015 breeding returns, it was agreed that the WFS would set a target species for each year to help promote awareness of, and encourage members both to keep and breed, that species.

The orange-cheeked waxbill was the first target species in 2016 and was joined by red-cheeked cordon bleu in 2017 as the numbers bred for both species had dipped precariously in recent years. The 2017 and 2018 returns have shown both species have bounced back with the red-cheeked cordon bleu recording over 180 bred in 2018 while the orange-cheeked waxbill recorded over 50 for two years running (from a low of one in 2015). The 2018 target species, the Red-winged Pytillia showed a slight increase on 2017 but still remains significantly below figures from five years ago.

The WFS retain the 2017 and 2018 target species and add the chosen target species for 2019 - the Red-headed Finch - giving the WFS target list as:

•  Red-headed Finch 
•  Red-winged Pytilia 
•  Red-cheeked Cordon Bleu 

Forthcoming Waxbill Finch Society meetings

2020	Branch
CANCELLED: 12 July 2020 (Sunday)	CANCELLED: South-East Branch Meeting Great Hallingbury Village Hall, Church Road, Great Hallingbury, Essex CM22 7TY
13 Sep 2020 (Sunday)	Northern Branch Meeting - Bramley Village Hall, South Yorks S66 2SA (5 minutes from M18 Junction 1). Hall open: 11:00am. Details: tbc
08 Nov 2020 (Sunday)	South-East Branch Meeting Great Hallingbury Village Hall, Church Road, Great Hallingbury, Essex CM22 7TY (5 mins from M11 Jnct 8 - Stansted Airport) Hall open: 10:30am Refreshments and supplies available. Free entry to members and £1 on the door to non members.
All meetings	See our  WFS branch meetings  page for all the details.

Paypal for your 2020/21 subscription

Subscriptions for 2020/21 run from 1st July 2020 for 12 months.

Please use Paypal to renew your membership or to join us as a new or returning member.

See our  membership  page for full details.

WFS Facebook page

The Waxbill Finch Society also has its own closed group on Facebook. Access the site through the banner above.

WFS members' breeding returns

The latest breeding returns (for 2018) feature in the  Species  section of the website and feature on the Profiles and Breeding Returns pages - the latter also allows you to download the full 1992-2018 returns in Excel or in pdf format. Since last year, we have presented these as a heat map to colour code the risks associated with the long-term viability of each species in UK aviculture. The returns are designed to promote debate on the popularity and risks associated with particular species. They also help in choosing those target species for the coming year.

The Waxbill Finch Society was formed in 1991 with the following aims:

• To encourage the breeding of Estrildid Finches (Waxbills, Munias, etc.)
• To share information about proven breeding and feeding methods
• To help members locate, exchange, purchase or sell stock
• To build up stocks of captive-bred birds
• To assist members to contact one another at Branch Meetings or by telephone

This website is therefore designed both to promote our society and to help it achieve these aims. We also hope it will encourage potential members to develop an interest in these marvellous birds.

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