354 NATURAL HISTORY OF BIRDS. 



grooved above, and hollowed below ; the cere is naked or feathered, the tail is short 

 and truncate, and a well developed crown is present. The genus embraces some fif- 

 teen sj)ecics, and several well marked varieties, or, as they are called, sub-species; all 

 come from the eastern islands extending from Malaysia to Australia. 



Almost every menagerie and zoological garden boasts several species of this genus, 

 those mentioned below being possibly the most common in confinement. They make 

 very interesting pets, crying now " cockatoo," now " pretty cocky," or screaming with 

 a voice far from musical. 



The white-crested cockatoo {P. albus) comes from the Mollucca Islands. It is 

 everywhere white except on the insides of some of the wing featliers. It reaches a 

 length of about eighteen inches. Usually its conversational powers arc rather limited, 

 but occasionally specimens are seen which can talk considerably, but their voice is 

 alw.^ys loud. 



Even more common is the yellow-crested cockatoo (/'. r/aleritd). It comes from 

 Australia and Tasmania, and is the most docile of the genus. It is readily distinguished 

 from the species just mentioned by the fact that the feathers of its crest are sul])hur- 

 ycllow, and its size somewhat larger (about twenty-two inches). A third sjiecies, the 

 pink cockatoo, receives its name (P. kddbeateri) from Mr. Leadbeatcr, an English 

 naturalist, who owned the first specimen brought to Euroj)e. The color is white 

 above, slightly suffused with ])ink, while the crest is baiTcd with crimson, yellow, and 

 white. Below, the feathers are also crimson. In size it is intermediate between the 

 two forms previously mentioned. The last species which our space will permit us to 

 notice is the rose-crested or Jlolhicca cockatoo, Plissolophus moluccensis, a bird about 

 the size of the great yellow-crcstod form, with a roseate or vermilion crest. As its 

 name indicates, it comes from the Spice Islands. 



In their native woods these cockatoos form large flocks, which raise an almost 

 intolerable din. This is not their only fault, for in those regions where civilized man 

 has settled, they commit no inconsiderable depredations on his fields. In the aviaries 

 of a zoological garden, one can watch them for hours without tiring. At one moment 

 they are climbing about quietly, using both beak and feet in the operation ; the next 

 instant they are all excitement, every feather is raised, and the crest is expanded and 

 shut with considerable rapidity. Instead of the soft " cockatoo" which they were 

 saying a moment before, they are yelling and screeching in a manner indicative of 

 great j>assion. The cause of the anger, if anger it be, is usually some inconsiderable 

 trifle, or possibly some person whose a])pearance or adorntnent does not suit them. 



Passing by the seven species of helmeted cockatoos {Calx/ptQrhi/nchns), all of 

 which come from Australia or the adjacent islands, we close the family with the 

 arara cockatoo, the only member of the genus Jlicrot/lossits. Like most others of the 

 genus, it has an erectile crest, but may be distinguished by its feathered cere, its 

 bare cheeks, its sharp, toothed beak, and its long, rounded tail. This species (JV. 

 aterrimus), when adult, is black, but in its younger stages is banded with yellow. In 

 absolute size it is tlie largest of parrots, measuring from twenty-eight to ihirty-two 

 inches in length, though some of the macaws, with their longer tails, exceed these 

 dimensions, though with far sm.aller body. The great black cockatoo, or palm- 

 cockatoo, as this species is also called, ranges from the Malayan Islands south to the 

 north coast of Australia. The generic name, Microf/lossus, means little tongue, and is 

 suggested by the peculiarities of that organ. 



The Platycercid^ have the short thick beak higher than long, its lower half 



