RINGNKLKED PAERAKEETS. 



203 



mother, and I wae obliged to reaiiove the latter to a 

 flight-cage to save her life. The father and dauighter 

 paired on several occasions, but without result. Xovv 

 comes the inoi't remarkable fa-ct. The fomale which I had 

 caged retained its crooked tail until the second moult, 

 and Jifter being two years in a cage it suddenly acijuirod 

 the perfect colouring of a male bu-d, shortly after which 

 it died. When opened, the taxidermist assured me that 

 it was a male bird ; the ovarium had entirely dis- 

 appeared witli the exception of two fi-agments on the 

 left side, wliich had become tightly cojivoluted so as to 

 present the appearance of male organs, the only 

 irregularity in tlie appearance being their lateral 

 position. 



Had I not known absolutely that it was impossible 

 lor me to liave made a mistake, tile bird having been 

 two years isolated in its female plmnage, and at lii'st 

 with tlie distorterd tail acqmred during incubation. I 

 should not ha\e hesitated for a moment to accept the 

 verdict of the t.ixidennist. Doubtless the acquisition of 

 male colouring was due to the decay of the ovarium. 



I found these PajTakeets so destructive to other small 

 birds in the avi.ir\' with them that I sent them to a 



KOSK-HEADED I'aRKAKEET. 



show at the Crystal Palace, pricing them at the cost of 

 the original two pairs of young birds ; they woi'e speedily 

 snapped up, and I was not sorry to see the la.stof them. 

 This species was e.xhibited at Regent's Park in 1877. 



Slaty-headed Parrakeet (Paloeornis schisticeps). 



Green ; hind-neck tinged witji vei'digris ; a dark 

 cherry-red patch on median wing-coverts; front edge 

 of v.-ing yellow ; priniaries with dark green outer webs 

 with narrow yellowish edge, dark grey inner webs ; 

 central tail-feathers more or less green at liase, blue in 

 the middle, bright yellow on distaJ half, the other 

 feathers green on outer and yellow on inner webs ; head 

 slaty blniah-black ; chin, mandibular stripe and a narrow 

 collar at the back of neck, black ; under parts pailer and 

 more yellowish-green than above ; under wing-coverts 

 verdigris ; tail below yellow ; beak with coral-red upper 

 mandible, the terminal hook and lower mandible yellow ; 

 fe«t dusky gr-een ; iris straw-colour ; orbital skin slaty. 

 Female without the dark red wing-patch. Hab., Xorth 

 India where, according to Hume, " it as confined to a 

 iiiiriTOw zone lying between the bases of the sub- 

 Himalav.m ranges aixT the fir.st high snowy ridge." 



■Of this species .Terdon remarks ("Birds of Indii." 

 Vol. I., p. 261) : — " Adams says : ' Its favourite food is 



seeds of wheat, apricots and pomegranates ; very noisy 



and gregai-ious.' " 



Hume says (" Xests and Eggs," Vol. III., p. 89): — 

 " The Slaty -headed Paroquet breeds thi-oughout the 

 Himalayas, south of the first Snowy Range, at lieights 

 of fi-ora 4,000 to 7,000 feet. During the winter thej- 

 keep much lower down, but about March they ibegin to 

 come upw:u'ds to breed, and the majority lay during 

 the latter half of March and April, though I took one 

 nest of fresh eggs on the 5th of May. 



" They nest at times in natural hollows of trees ; 

 in fact, this I think is more usual, but not infrequently 

 in holes cut by themselves. The tree in which I have 

 most coumionly foimd them is the hill-oak. The eggs 

 are often very deep down and difficult to secure, 

 especially when, as is often the case, the tree is a sound 

 one. The egg-chamber is at times very large, but is 

 never less than 4 or 5 inches in diameter. They lay 

 from four to five eggs, which are commonly placed on 

 chips of wood ; the nest has no other lining. The 

 female sits very close, and will not leave her eggs, 

 though you may be ten minutes hacking away with an 

 axe to get down to the nest." 



" The eggs are rather broad ovals, pure white when 

 fresh, and giossless. In size they are intermediate be- 

 tween those of P. purpureus and P. torquatus. They 

 appear to be often much soiled and ,'tained during incu- 

 bation, as is not uncommon with those of P. purjyureus, 

 but which is not common with those of P torquatus. 

 In length these eggs vary from 1.08 to 1.17 inch, and 

 in breadth from 0.89 to 0.94 inch; but the average is 

 about 1.12 by 0.92 inch." 



The P. purpurexis of Hume's work is the Indian 

 Blossom-headed Parrakeet. 



Buss does not mention P. scJiisticeps in his " Hand- 

 book," nor does it appear in the Zoological Society's 

 "List," but Mr. Seth-Smith says (" Parrakeets," 

 p. 107) : " It is a very beautiful Parrakeet, but one 

 that is seldom seen alive in England." 



BtTRiiESE Sl.^tt-headed Parrakeet (Palxornis 

 Aiischi). 



Differs from the preceding in the yellower tint of 

 the green ; the bluer head and the more brownish back ; 

 the central tail-feathers much narrower ; beak with 

 upper mandible orange-vermilion tipped with yellowish ; 

 lower mandible pale yellow ; feet pale sordid green ; 

 irides creamy white or grey with a narrow inner ring 

 of golden yellow : sometimes pale brown, with an 

 outer ring of white. Female smaller and without the 

 dark red wing-patch. Hab., Bunnah, and probably 

 northward to Arrakan. 



According to Mr. Davison (" Stray Feathers," 

 Vol. VI., p. 119), "It occurs in .small parties, frequent- 

 ing the edges and thinner portions of the forest Jind 

 the banks of streams. Its voice is very similar to that 

 of P. sc?iisticeps of India." 



Mr. Davison found it feeding upon large red flowers, 

 but doubtless its general food would be similar to that 

 of other species of Paleeornis. 



Mr. E. W. Harper presented a specimen of this very 

 rare Parrakeet to the London Zoological Society in 

 1900. 



Malabar Parrakeet (Palaoriti 

 Green, somewhat bluer above than below ; the head, 

 neck, upper back, and breast ashy-grey, with the excep- 

 tion of the forehead, which is green edged behind with 

 blue ; the lores and a patch encircling the eyes, which 

 are green ; from the l>eak runs a broad black moustao.iial 

 stripe which joins a black collar bordered behind by 



