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  1. Species
  2. ›
  3. Estrildidae
  4. ›
  5. Aidemosyne
  6. ›
  7. Plum-headed Finch
Plum-headed Finch
Photo · (c) Ged Tranter, some rights reserved (CC BY)

BirdUp · Species

Plum-headed Finch

Aidemosyne modesta(Gould, 1837)

Updated 21 March 2026

Conservation status: Least ConcernOrigin: Endemic
Order
Passeriformes
Family
Estrildidae
Genus
Aidemosyne

At a glance

The Plum-headed Finch is a tiny bird, about 13 cm long, listed as Least Concern and endemic to Australia. It can be seen year-round.

Size
13 cm
Conservation status
Least Concern
Origin
Endemic
Best seen
Year-round
Commonness
Endemic
  • Identification
  • Where
  • When
  • Behaviour
  • Gallery

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

What does a Plum-headed Finch look like?

The Plum-headed Finch is a tiny bird, about 13 cm long and weighing 11–14 g.

The plum-headed finch also known as cherry finch is a common species of estrildid finch found in Australia. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 100,000 – 1,000,000 km2.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length
13 cm
Weight
11.2–13.8 g

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

03 · When

When to look

When can you see a Plum-headed Finch?

The Plum-headed Finch is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

What does a Plum-headed Finch eat?

The Plum-headed Finch feeds on seeds, usually foraging in pairs or flocks.

06 · Gallery

Plumage up close

6 photos

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02 · Where

Where to find it

Where does the Plum-headed Finch live in Australia?

The Plum-headed Finch is endemic to Australia, recorded across 25 of Australia’s bioregions.

BreedingQLD (except Cape York Pen., far north-east) and north NSW (east Australia)

Distribution from BirdUp Australia community data

Legend

  • Resident
  • Non-breeding
  • Vagrant
  • Breeding

7 regions recorded