Instructions
Watch the birds to see which ones are singing. The males are usually the only ones who sing.
Look at the colors of your finches. Fully-grown male finches have bright red coloring on their faces or breasts. Females usually do not have any red coloring, or they may only have some redness on the crown of their heads. Red coloring in males applies to African Red Head finches and European Goldfinches.
Look at the beak color of a Zebra finch. Males have red beaks and black bars on their chests. Females have orange beaks and less colorful feathers.
Look at your Purple Breasted Gouldian finch for a deeper purple on the males. Or, the males may have a bright blue circle of feathers on their heads that is deeper and bigger than in females.
Examine your Green Singer finch for brighter green coloring on the males. Females have a circle around their throat.
Look at the head coloring of a Blue Cap Cordon Bleu. Males have deeper blue coloring while females are more brown in color.
Look at the cheeks of a Red Cheeked Cordon Bleu. Males have bright red cheeks and intense blue feathers.
Look at an Owl finch to see that the males have a larger area of white head feathers than females.
How to Tell Male & Female Finches Apart
It is moderately easy to tell male and female finches apart, since their markings are usually gender distinct. Like many birds, the male finch is more brightly colored than the female, since the males must compete for the female's attention. A simple visual inspection is usually correct in determining gender, despite the fact that there are many varieties of finches. Male finches are more outgoing, brighter and boisterous than the female finches in every species.