Hi Lawrie,
When I was at La Trobe University (1975 to 1978) there was a
group of them. I wrote it up in my paper: Veerman P.A. 1979, 'Additional Records
of Birds from La Trobe University', Australian Bird Watcher 8(2): 40-42. I did
not know there were other records at that time. So thanks for pointing that
out.
The quote is : "The Chestnut-breasted Finches were first seen in February
1977 and last seen in July 1977, they could usually be easily observed in the
reserve." Many people got to see them over that time. There were six of them for
the first few months and the number dwindled as winter set in. I did not know if
or why they were feral. There was nothing in their behaviour to suggest they
were overly familiar with people. I did not think them to be aviary releasees or
escapers at the time. These birds do become quite calm in aviaries and these
birds were not (I had had them in an aviary for years before that
time.)
Philip
