THE ECLECTI. 133 



ashen-grey, with black scales and claws. The distinguishing 

 marks are the darker green ; the narrow blue border to the wing ; 

 only the three outermost tail feathers bluish on the outer web. 

 The size is not noticeably smaller than the two preceding (length, 

 12 Jin. to 13§in. ; wings, 8in. to O^in. ; tail, 4 Jin. to 4 Jin.). 

 The female is of a dark-scarlet ; on the upper part of the 

 body more of a cherry red ; the band across the back dark- 

 blue, with a violet lustre ; the edge of the wing, the small 

 under coverts of the wing, the primaries and their coverts, 

 blue ; the upper side of the tail red, the reverse side orange- 

 yellow, the tip both above and below of bright yellow ; 

 all the lower part of the body dark-blue ; the under covert of 

 the tail orange-red. The last mentioned is said to be the chief 

 mark of distinction (length, 12|in. ; wings, Sin. to 8|in. ; 

 tail, 4|in. to 5in,). 



They are natives of the Ceram Islands. The male was first 

 described by Bonaparte, 1854 ; the female, however, had 

 already been described by Brisson, and named by Boddaert. 

 The cock rarely appears in our markets ; I possessed one for 

 several years which Dr. Platen had brought over. The female 

 scarcely ever appears in the trade. 



CHAP. XLIL— THE GREAT-BILLED ECLECTUS. 



Pdittacus megalorrhynchus, Bdd. 



Black-shouldered Parrot (Ger., Grossschnahelpapagei, ScJncarz- 

 schulter-Edelpapagei ; Fr., Perroquet d epaulettes noires ; Dut., 

 Zwartschouder Edeljoapegaai) — Distinginshing Marks. 



The species of which I am now about to speak may be dis- 

 tinguished from the preceding at a glance, for the feathers of 

 their wing coverts have shaded edges, and, consequently, the 

 wings are not so uniform in colour, but are peculiarly marked ; 

 the beak is decidedly larger, and mostly altogether red. The 

 females are not red, like those of the previously-mentioned 

 species, but do not, as far as we know at present, differ at 

 all, or only very little, from the male. 



The Great-billed Eclectus is grass-green ; the plumage on the 



