Since antiquity, the keeping of finches as pets has been common throughout the Mediterranean countries and it remains a widespread hobby to the present day. Since most finches are sourced from the wild this hobby can have implications for their conservation, especially for already imperilled species. We conducted a survey of 257 households in the city of Guelma, in the north-east of Algeria, and of 70 participants to a European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis show contest in Algiers, to understand the owners’ motives for keeping cage birds and find solutions to mitigate any negative effects on the trade. Keeping and showing finches in Algeria is a male-dominated hobby, especially for the 30–40 year age bracket. Our surveys indicate that almost 60% of households had a cage bird, with the European Goldfinch being the most popular species. With a mean of 0.75 goldfinches per household we estimate that in Guelma alone some 17,000 are kept in captivity. Between 70% and 90% of the owners indicated that their birds were indeed wild-sourced, and over 85% of them were aware of the protected status of the European Goldfinch in Algeria. Our findings underline the need for strict enforcement of existing laws and better targeted awareness campaigns to influence the behaviour of owners in order to reduce the demand for wild specimens.

自古以来，饲养雀类作为宠物在整个地中海国家都很普遍，直到今天它仍然是一种广泛的爱好。由于大多数雀类都来自野外，这种爱好可能会对它们的保护产生影响，尤其是对于已经濒临灭绝的物种。我们对阿尔及利亚东北部 Guelma 市的 257 户家庭以及欧洲金翅雀Carduelis Carduelis的 70 名参与者进行了调查在阿尔及尔举办表演比赛，了解业主饲养笼养鸟的动机，并找到解决方案以减轻对贸易的任何负面影响。在阿尔及利亚饲养和展示雀类是男性主导的爱好，尤其是对于 30-40 岁年龄段的人。我们的调查表明，近 60% 的家庭拥有笼养鸟，其中欧洲金翅雀是最受欢迎的物种。我们估计每户平均有 0.75 只金翅雀，仅在 Guelma 就有大约 17,000 只被圈养。70% 到 90% 的业主表示他们的鸟类确实是野生来源的，其中超过 85% 的业主知道欧洲金翅雀在阿尔及利亚的受保护状态。