120 Birds I Have Kept. 



The Red-crested Grey Cardinal, Cardinalis cucuUatus, der 

 graiie Kardinal in German, le Paroare ou Cardinal Imppe in 

 French, is a bold handsome bird, whose head, ever erect 

 crest, and throat are bright cardinal red; the breast, belly, 

 and under tail coverts are white : a white collar almost meets 

 at the back of the neck, which, as well as the back, rump, 

 and wings are a delicate lavender grey. The tail is black, 

 and the flight feathers of the wings are the same colour, but 

 fringed on their outer aspect with a narrow line of grey. 



The female is decidedly smaller than her mate, but so 

 generally resembles him that it is difficult, unless to a very 

 experienced eye, to say to which sex a given bird belongs: 

 some females, however, have a patch of white on the wings, 

 which is scarcely visible unless the bird is flying, when it 

 becomes sufficiently conspicuous: I have never seen it in the 

 male. 



It is a curious fact that too liberal a supply of hemp seed, 

 of which by the way these birds are extremely fond, will turn 

 the beautiful white breast of the hen bird a dingy black, 

 although I have not observed that it had the same efl'ect 

 upon the male. At the next ensuing moulting season, how- 

 ever, the bird will regain the usual spotless purity of its 

 snow-white breast, providing the hemp seed is withheld. 



The young resemble their parents, but are lighter in their 

 body colours generally, and have smaller and darker crests. 



The adult Grey Cardinal is about the same size as the 

 English Song Thrush, and is every whit as hardy. I have 

 found it a very free breeder in the aviary, producing two, 

 sometimes three broods in the season, which commences in 

 April or May, and is often prolonged into September. The 

 eggs are from three to five in number, rather small for the 

 size of the bird, and bearing a general resemblance in colour 

 and markings to those of the European Elackbird. The young 

 are hatched in the extraordinarily short time of twelve days, 

 and grow rapidly if the weather is warm: if it is cold and 



