34 BIRDS OF AUSTRALIA. 



tiful Parakeet, which has hitherto only been found on the 

 southern portion of the continent of Australia, that the pre- 

 sent paper must necessarily be brief. It is strictly an inha- 

 bitant of the interior, over which it doubtless enjoys a wide 

 range. Sir George Grey procured it in the dense scrub to the 

 north-west of Adelaide, and Gilbert encountered it in the 

 white-gum forests of the Swan River settlement. Captain 

 Sturt at page 188 of the second volume of the narrative of 

 his journeys into the interior, says, " I believe I have already 

 mentioned that, shortly after we first entered the Murray, 

 flocks of a new Paroquet passed over our heads, apparently 

 emigrating to the N.W. They always kept too high to be 

 fired at, but on our return, hereabouts, we succeeded in killing 

 one. It made a good addition to our scanty stock of objects 

 of natural history." 



Gilbert remarks that, in Western Australia, it is met with 

 in small families of from nine to twelve in number, feeding on 

 seeds, buds of flowers and honey gathered from the white 

 gum-tree. Its flight, as indicated by its form, is rapid in the 

 extreme. 



The male has the head, neck, shoulders, rump, and all the 

 under surface beautiful jonquil-yellow ; upper part of the 

 back and scapularies olive ; primaries and tail deep blue ; 

 several of the greater wing-coverts dull scarlet, forming a con- 

 spicuous mark on the centre of the wing ; irides bright red ; 

 bill scarlet ; feet ash-grey. 



The female has the head, sides of the face, back of the neck, 

 upper part of the back and scapulars dull olive-green ; throat, 

 all the under surface, rump and wing- coverts yellowish green, 

 the latter passing into deep green on the centre of fhe 

 shoulder; primaries, some of the secondaries, and spurious 

 wing deep blue -black, margined externally with yellowish 

 green ; the remainder of the secondaries and a few of the 

 greater coverts deep red ; two centre tail-feathers deep green, 

 the remainder green at the base, passing into black on the 



