TALKIIS^G BIRDS. 



Familiar as the parrots are for houseliold 

 pets, it is surprising how little is really known 

 of them in a scientific way. A satisfactory 

 method of classifying them has not yet been 

 decided upon by students of birds, and far too 

 little is known of them in their native wilds. 

 Most of my readers, especially if they have 

 had the privilege of visiting the zoological gar- 

 dens of some of our large cities, have doubt- 

 less noticed that there are a large number 

 of species in the parrot family. 



The best division of the parrot family seems 

 to be the following: Stringops^ Nestor^ and 

 Psittacidw. Among the most interesting kinds 

 are the parrots proper, which have short and 

 even tails ; the macaws, including the parra- 

 keets, whose tails are graduated, with the two 

 middle feathers slender and much longer than 

 the rest ; the cockatoos, which have a beautiful 

 crest, sometimes of various colors ; the lories, 

 and the broad-tails. 



Most of the parrots dwell in tropical cli- 



