My New Pets: A pair of Munias

While on my home, my usual stop-over is in Sandigan Bayan along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City. This place has become a talipapa or Farmer's Wet Market with lots of people converging to sell and buy cheap farmer's produce that are anything under the sun, from cheap t shirts, newly harvested hybrid corns, peanuts cooked food and lots of street foods you could imagine.

I normally don't go out to check any of these items because of the sun's heat until I spotted a woman selling cheap bird pets so I thought I'd check it out. I was surprise how cheap the birds were so without hesitation, I immediately bought a pair of Munias(Lonchura leucogastra). According to the seller, these birds are caught in the rice fields of Nueva Ecija province. I had no idea what kind of bird they were at first and I thought they would die anyway because during my childhood days, I also try to catch similar birds and would really want to keep them as pets but they always die the next day no matter how I try to feed them. They just wont eat anything until they die of hunger.

It has been 3 days after I bought my pair of tiny Munias and still, they are alive and very healthy and playful but they don't chirp. They only chirp when their water is empty. They must have gotten used to the conditions they were into, living in a small cage with plenty of food and water. Maybe after the next 30 days, the female will start to lay eggs and their family will start to grow and I will be needing people to adopt them or maybe I should keep them or set them free. But in the meantime, I will keep them as pets and will serve as my warning gadget.

Just an update:
As of April 17,2011, the 5th day anniversary of my 2 lovely Munias, they are as playful as ever and they are now constantly chirping while playing. A remarkable change it is not like the last 4 days when they are so afraid to chirp. This could only mean that they must have become very familiar with their environment.