Breeding my budgies

Question
QUESTION: Hi,
I have a pair of budgies, and I want to breed them. I have recently bought a nest box and was wondering, do I need to put any wood shavings or anything inside the box where the groove is?
Also, my female budgie has had a brown cere her whole life (she's about 3 years old), but over the past few weeks, it's turned blue, is that normal for a female? I just hope she's not a male.
My breeding pair are yellow with a touch of black (male) and the female is blue and white. What could a possible colour outcome be?
And lastly, is my female fertile to breed at the age of 3-4 years old?
Thanks

ANSWER: Hi, Georgina.

No, budgies do not like anything in the bottom of their nesting box...just leave it bare.  

No, it is not normal for a female's brown cere to turn blue.  This bird might be male.

Possible color outcomes for chicks would depend on color mutations of the parents, AS WELL AS the grandparents.  You'll just need to see what comes out from this pair once babies hatch.  Outside coloration is only part of the genetic profile of a bird...it's what's in the DNA that counts!

Yes, your female is sexually mature at 3-4 years old.

Chrys

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you, just one more thing, as my 'female' could be a male, should I get her sexed at the local vet to be sure?
Thanks

Answer
Hi again, Georgina.

You can sex the bird yourself (cheaper) if you know how to clip toenails.  All it takes is a couple drops of blood from a toenail that has been cut just a bit too short so that a couple of drops of blood show.  Then you can send the blood to a Lab for processing.  It costs about $20 each.  Visit Avian Biotech Labs or Zoogen on the internet.  An avian vet will charge you much more to do this.  They will send you free testing kits and instructions, etc.  OR you can wait and see if your "female" lays eggs.  The choice is yours.

You may be able to sex this bird based on its behavior.  Is this bird vocal or does it just chirp (its male if it sings and is really vocal)?  A male will behave "macho" around its female.  The male will feed the female beak-to-beak if they are pair-bonded.

Chrys