234 



FOREIGN BUIDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



incubation lasts eighteen days, and the young appear in 

 about twenty-eight days. 



Unfortuna'tely, this species is rarely to be seen in 

 the London market nowadays. It first reached the 

 London Zoological Society's Gardens in 1862. and con- 

 tinued to be received from time to time up to 1887. 



Orange-bellied Grass Parrakeet 

 {Xeophema chrysoga'^tin). 



Above grass-green ; ieseei' wing-coverts, caa-pal coverts, 

 anterior greater-coverts, primai-y-coverts, and outer webs 

 of primaries deep baue . the outer webs of the latter, 

 however, tinged with greenish towards the tip ; two 

 central tail-feathers bJiiish-green, bluer towards thi? tip : 

 the next pair simiiilar but with black margins to the 

 inner webs ; the rest greenish-blue on outer, black on 

 inner webs and broadly tipped with bright yellow ; 

 frontail band blue witli a paler edging on ibotli sides ; 

 lores, cheek.*, and breast yellcwish-green, becoming 

 greenisli yellow on the aibdomen ; a large central 

 abdomirual orange patch ; luider tail-covert® yellow ; 

 under wing-coverts deep blue ; 'beak dark brawn, paler 

 below; feet didl bi'own ; irides dark bix)wn. Female 

 emaJler and duller, wjtli the orange alxicminal patrJi 

 more restricted and less brilliant. Hab., " South - 

 Eastern Australia, from tlie Clarence River District to 

 Victoria, and Tasmania; very abundant on the Acta?on 

 Islands " (Salvadori). 



Gould says ("Handbook, "" Vol. II.. p. 75) :—" I 

 observed it sparingly dispersed in the neighbornhood of 

 Hobart Town and JNew Norfolk, but found it in far 

 greater abundance on the Acteeon Islands, at the en- 

 trance of D'Entrecasteaux Channel. These small and un- 

 inhaibited d.slands are covered with grasses and scrub, 

 intermingled with a sp^iies of Barilla, nearly allied to 

 Alnplece hailimus ; and almost the only land-bird tluit. 

 enlivens these solitani- spots is the present beautiful 

 Parrakeet. I frequently flushed small flocks from among 

 the grass, when t.hey almost inunediately alighted on the 

 BariiMa bushes around me. their sparkling orange liellies 

 forming a striking contrast with the green of tlie other 

 pirts of 'their plimiase and the silvery foliage of the 

 plant upon which tliey iteted. I made many unsuccess- 

 ful attempts to disco.-er their brei^ding-places ; as, how- 

 ever, these island's are destitute of large tree.s. I am in- 

 duced to believe that they lay eggs in holes on the 

 ground, or among the stones on the shore. On visiting 

 Soutii Australia m wiiHer, I there found it equally 

 abundant on the flat, marshy grounds bordering the 

 coast, especially between the Port of Adedaide and Hold- 

 faist Bay." 



Mr. A. J. Campbell (" Nests and Eggs of Australian 

 Birds," p. 652) says : — " Mr. A. E. Brent informs me 

 that this bird usually lays llate in the seaton 

 (December), depositing its eggs in a small broken spout 

 of a fallen tree." He thus describes the niidification : — 

 " yest. — Usmally within a small ihoMow spout of a faJlen 

 tree or log. Et^/fs. — Clutch, four to six ; round in form ; 

 texture of shell fine ; surface slightly glossy ; colour pure 

 white. Dimenisions in inches of a pair : (1) .84 x .73. 

 (2) .83 X -75 ; three from a .fpt taken near Ross. 

 Tasmania: (1) .86 x .74, (2) .84 x .7. (3) .82 x -7." 



Rubs sayis of it : — " Very rare in the ir.arket ; imported 

 by J. AbnUiams. of London." 



Four examples were purchased for the London 

 ■Zoological Gardens in 1873. 



Rock Grass-Parrakeet {Xeophema petrophila). 

 Above dull olive-green ; amaller ripper wing-coverta 

 near bend of wing and outer coverts verditer-blue ; outer 

 gi'eater coverts blue; bastard-wing, primary-coverts, and 



outer webs of primaries deep blue, the latLer more or less 

 greenish towards tips ; iimer webs of primaries brownish- 

 black; central tail-feathere hluisli-green, the rest blui°b- 

 green at base, the im.er webs brownish-black, the tips 

 broadly bright yellow ; frontal biind deep indigOMblue, 

 edged on botJi sides with dull verditer blue ; lores and 

 orbital ring cKdl verditer blue ; under .surface more 

 yellowish than above, especiailily on the abdomen, which 

 is often slightly tinged with orange in the centre; under 

 tail-coverts yellow ; uipper mandible deep redddsh-lbrown, 

 lower mandible pale yellow at the sides, blui'Sih-grey at 

 the tip ; feet dark brovmish-gTey ; indes very dark 

 brown. Female not differentiated. Hab., South-Western 

 Australia. 



Gould says ("Handbook." Vol. II., pp. 76. 77) :— " It 

 occurs in great nimibers on Rottnest and other islands 

 near Swan River." ' Here.' says Gilbert, ' it breed's 

 in the holes of the most precipitous cliffs, choosing in 

 preference those facing the water and most difficult of 

 access ; and hence it required no slight degi'ee of exertion 

 to procure examples of the eggs, which, according to 

 the teistimony of the natives, are white, and seven or 

 eight in number. 



^' ' Its flight is extremely rapid, and at times it 

 mounts to a great height in the air.' 



Mr. A. J Campbell (" Nests and Eggs," p. 653) says : 

 — "It is a rare picture to witness a pair of these lovable 

 little creatures in their golden-green plumage, perched' on 

 the fa'ce of a limestone crag, amidst such rou-.antic and 

 rugged suuToundings. I wng singularly successful m 

 seciu-ing a series of their eggs at Rottnest Island, where 

 the birds invariably select rocky islets off the main 

 island for breeding pui-poses, notably Green ar.d 

 Parrakeet Lslands. 



" By a curious coincidence the first person on the 

 island to present me w-ith specimens of 'lx)t!i eggs synd 

 live birds was ilr. A. H. Courderot, a corresponding 

 memlier of tlie Society before which I described the eggs, 

 viz., the Royal Society of Victoria. Otlier eggs I took 

 myself. The birds make no nest, but simply deposit 

 four or five eggs under the e'laibs of indurated sand or 

 limestone, where t.he eggs ai-e sometimes ^er^■ difficidt 

 ■to reach, especially if a crevice on a steep side sloping 

 to the water's edge be selected." He thus describes the 

 nidification : — " Ne.^t. — In a crevice of a rock or under 

 j'helving stones, usually on islets adjacent to the main- 

 land." " ICagx. — Clutch, four to five; some roundish, 

 otliers elliptical ir shape ; texture of sliejl fine ; surface 

 glossv ; colour, pure white. Dimensions in inches of 

 a proper clutch : (1) 1.0 x .75, (2) .98 x .78. (3) .96 x 

 .75, (4) .95 X -76. The eggs of the Rock Parrakeet 

 appear to be the largest of the genus." 



Mr. Seth-'.Sonith rightly conjectured that this 

 Parrakeet had been im]x>rted into England ; though tli?^ 

 sijecimens were sent to the Conit'inent. Buss says : — " A 

 p.iir from Abrahams in my birdroom sat for several 

 montlis in a cage together witb. young Rose-headed 

 Parrakeets, and also fed with pleasure on the follo-wing. 

 prepared' for the latter: — Cooked' rice, egg-bre.id. sweet 

 fruit, etc. ; the female took posse.ssion of a St.irling nest- 

 box, which chanced to be in the cage, and one day a 

 voung (Rock PaiTakeet.) fleiw out ; two rotten eggs were 

 left in the nest. Young plumage: — Above fawn-gi-eyish 

 olive-green, below clear olive-green (without yellow 

 tinge) ; cheeks and ear-region yellowish-green : the blue- 

 frontal band only narrow and ill-defined (loral and 

 orbital ring wanting) ; beak brownish horn-grey ; eyes 

 black ; feet brownish-grey. The following year the pair 

 laid four eggs in the nest-box, which unhappily were 

 infertile." 



