VENEZUELAN ORNITHOLOGY — FRIEDMANN AND SMITH 497 



Copulation proceeds as follows: Both sit close together side by side for periods 

 of 20 to 45 minutes; caress one another, run bill through neck and crown feathers. 

 Both begin to utter a soft, somewhat modified, nestling food-begging note and 

 to agitate the wings in the manner of young when being fed. Female assumes 

 position, hanging head down at approximately a 45 degree angle. Male with one 

 foot on branch, places other foot on back of female, tails brought together with 

 undersurfaces touching; body of male horizontal, but not covering female, being 

 directed off at an angle of approximately 30 degrees; wings agitated more or less 

 continuously throughout copulation (1-2 minutes?). Female remains motionless 

 throughout copulation, hanging head down as described; wings not agitated. 

 Both continue the modified food-begging note throughout. Copulation is carried 

 on daily, often three or four times a day, throughout February, March, and April, 

 generally in the early morning hours. 



Work on the nest cavity was commenced within 3 days after copulation began. 

 Generally female works while male remains outside, but at times both work 

 together. Work continued sporadically, usually in the morning, until eggs are 

 laid, about a month later. 



During this time, the parrots become quite ill-tempered toward people, dogs, 

 etc. The (threat?) display used particularly at this time by both may be described 

 as follows: Body erect to horizontal, rarely hanging down from branch, crest and 

 neck feathers erected, wings opened at leading edge, but with flight feathers still 

 folded in near-normal manner over back, tail outspread showing red of inner webs, 

 head often twisted so that yellow crown patch is directed at intruder. Continuous 

 loud calling. 



Female does all the incubation, male generally remains in immediate vicinity, 

 often at the entrance itself, but was not seen to enter cavity after incubation 

 began. Female leaves nest in early morning and late afternoon, pair flies in circles 

 around nest site with much loud calling. At times before incubation, and con- 

 tinuously thereafter, the male feeds the female by regurgitation, the female 

 begging food by using the same note as that used by both during copulation, and 

 by agitating the wings. Even when standing beside a plate of food, she commonly 

 begs and receives food from the male, although at times she will eat by herself. 

 The eggs themselves were not fertile and never hatched. 



While the foregoing notes are on captive birds, field observations 

 (generally brief glimpses) on nesting dates, nest-building activity, and 

 early morning and late afternoon flights confirm the above obser- 

 vations. Display was observed in the field, but never at the nest site — 

 presumably this is not characteristic. Copulation and feeding of the 

 female were not observed in the field, although fledglings were seen 

 being fed. In this connection, this parrot was observed eating the 

 ripe fruit of Pereskia guamacho and Curatella americana. 



Amazona amazonica amazonica (Linnaeus) 



Psittacus amazonicus Linnaeus, Systema naturae, ed. 12, vol. 1, 1766, p. 147 

 (Surinam, error = "le pays des Amazones," Hellmayr, Nov. Zool., vol. 17, 

 1910, p. 406). 

 1 cT, Caicara, May 1. 1950; gonads small; iris orange; bill horn color; extremities 



dark gray; feet gray; skull well ossified; gizzard contained seeds of Curatella 



americana. 



We previously recorded a specimen from Cantaura, and sight records 

 from Caicara. A bird was taken at Caicara chiefly because it seemed 



