174 



FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



Argentina and the Bolivian Chaco (The. Ibis, 1903, 

 p. 457), says : " Iris reddish-yellow. Occurs in large 

 flocks of several hundreds, but is very shy. In the 

 morning and evening they fly to and from their feeding- 

 places, making a deafening noise." 



This is more freely imported than any other Amazon, 

 and is a general favourite as it is an excellent talker ; 

 in fact, in this respect it almost equals the Grey Parrot ; 

 it is also very long-lived, so that for anyone who wants 

 one of these big fellows as a companion this is un- 

 doubtedly the species which he should select. 



Although I have never pos;sessed itj I have met with 

 so many at the houses of my friends that I have no 

 hesitation in stating emphatically that I consider it 

 far and away the most talented and most attractive of 

 its genus. 



Some years since I had occasion to call upon my old 

 friend Mr. Abrahams, and, finding him out, I waited 

 and had lunch with him. As we sat at table I heard, 

 as I thought, a street arab singing the whole of the 

 words of " Ta-ra-ra-boom-de-ay " from beginning to 

 end, in a monotonous voice. " Do vou hear it? " said 

 ilr. Abrahams. "What, that child singing?" That 

 tickled my friend. "Why, my good man," he said, 

 " that's my Blue-fronted Amazon; if you wait you will 

 hear him sing the whole of the words of a second song 

 and then whistle a third." Sure enough the whole pro- 

 gramme was carried out conscientiously by that clever 

 bird, and then it started again. 



The Blue-fronted Amazon is very hardy, but, like 

 all its congeners, it is not perfect, for it is undoubtedly 

 treacherous and noisy. 



First deposited at the London Zoological Society's 

 Gardens in 1864, this Amazon has never since been 

 absent from that collection, in all probably consider- 

 ably more than two dozen specimens have, from time 

 to time, found a home there. 



Yellow-shouldered Amazon (Chrysotis ochroptera). 



The prevailing colour of the adult male is green, 

 somewhat paler below than above, all the feathers with 

 black margins ; the forehead and lores yellowish-white ; 

 the crown, cheeks, sides of head, including the ear- 

 toverts, upper part of throat, and bend of wing yellow ; 

 primaries mostly black ; wing-speculum scarlet ; outer 

 tLiil feathers with the basal third cinnabar-red ; the outer 

 feather with blue outer web ; the tips of all the tail 

 feathers broadly yellowish ; greater under wing-coverts 

 and inner webs of quills below blue ; beak horn- white : 

 feet pale; iris orange, "reddish-brown " (Hartert). The 

 female differs, according to Russ, in having the region 

 of the lower mandible, the lower breast and abdomen 

 sky-blue; all other colours duller; it is probable that 

 it has a paler iris than the male and a shorter beak. 

 Hab.. Venezuela, perhaps Trinidad, certainly the 

 Islands of Aruba and Margarita. 



In an article by Dr. E. Hartert {The Ibis, 1893. 

 pp. 301-303). he says : " This beautiful Amazon, of 

 which, in spite of the numbers that are kept in con- 

 finement, specimens procured in a wild state are so 

 rare in museums that its habitat could only be given 

 with a query in Salvadori's " Catalogue of the 

 Parrots," inhabits the Island of Aruba. It might not 

 be out of place here to state that it is also common 

 in the lowland forests of the district of Coro and in 

 other parts of Venezuela, whence large numbers are 

 sent to the bird-shops of the larger towns of Venezuela 

 and to Curasao." 



" This Parrot is not rare in the more wooded and 

 rocky parts of the island, but is sonwwhat siliy and not 



eaisily to b« obtained in mnnbens. It is said to breied in 

 hollow trees." 



Mr. P. R. Lovre, writing on the birds of Margarita 

 Island, says {The Ibis, 1907, p. 557) : — "I saw some of 

 these PajTOts in the high trees above El Valle, where 

 Ca.pt. Robinson observed the species in laiige flocks, but 

 tliere were also several parties round the lagoon at the 

 west end of the island." 



Dr. Russ accounts this one of the most familiar Parrots 

 in the trade, " imtoh beloved by many friefndfi of 

 feathered prattlers ; whiilst others de.spise it generally, 

 as they do all small Amazons. Individual birds of this 

 species aie astonishing'ly diversely gifted with speech. 

 Acknowledged connoisseurs have iudic.Vted certain 

 remarkably richly endowed Little Y'dlow-heads (German 

 trivial name) ; many ■■vill learn lothing. Behaviour 

 entertaining; for instance, it inimics faithfully alll* kinds 

 of animal voices, the crowing of cocks, the cackling of 

 hens, the cooing of pigeons, itlie miawing of cats, the 

 barking of dogs, etc. ; it becomes uncommonly easily 

 and altogether tame." 



Two examples of this species were deposited at the 

 London Zoological Gardens in 1859, since which date a 

 good many examples have fceen e-xhibited theire. 



Y'ellow-fronted Amazon {Chrysalis ochrocephala). 



The prevailing colour of this bird, as usual, is gra^s- 

 green, with more or less defined dusky hind margins to 

 tiie fe-ithers; lighter and more glistening bedow than 

 above and more gdlden, with dark shaft-streaks on the 

 flanks and under tail-ooverts ; a large yellow frontal 

 pateh which in its centre exitends baCKwards to the 

 middle of the crown, in soime examples (probably males) 

 the yellow covers the crown, always, however, leaving a 

 1>road ga'een interval above tihe eye ; bend of wing and 

 wing-speculUBii crimson ; in the open wing the base of 

 the outer web of fourth secondary is seen to be 

 broadly purplish crimjson ; primaries blue black, all 

 but the first, with their outer webs gi-een towards 

 the base ; 'secondaries blueiblack toward the tips, 

 becoming bright blue on the outer webs ; tail with 

 golden tgreen tenninal belt narrowest on the central 

 feathers, all the lateral feathers with a large rose-red 

 spoit towiu'ds the base of their inner webs, and a green 

 band across the middle; tipper mandible fleshy horn 

 colour, blackisih towards the tip. the cere blackish beset 

 with black bristles ; lower mandible blaclcish hom-grey ; 

 feet ashy-grey, with whitish powdering ; claws horn- 

 whitish ; iris, orange to pale amber. 



The females differ in having the yellow on the crown 

 restricted if not absent, and the iris pale. The beak is 

 narrower from before to beyond the middle when viewed 

 from ahove. Hab., " Venezuela and Trinidad, Colombia, 

 Ecuador, and E.-istern Peru " {Salcadoi-i). 



The only note I have found i-esi>ecting the wild life 

 is that qiiiot'Bd under C. amazonica; it is freely im- 

 ported, and, according to Russ, the Indians regard it as 

 the most highly intelligent species ; he says that it is 

 " prized a.? a capable talker ; Snrinams learn to speak 

 superlatively well, also to laugh, ciy, sing, and whistle 

 b3autifidly ; most of them are middling good bii'ds, only 

 a few are slightly or not at all gifted." 



About the year 1893 an aunt of mine gave me a 

 female example of this species which had been in ber 

 possession aibotit twenty years, and had been in 

 captivity in the possession of at least two owners for 

 many years previously. 



Althotiigli an undoubted female, tliis bird had entirely 

 forgotten" its own language, and expressed all its 



