330 ANNUAL, REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1923 



and in North America the Carolina parakeet formerly ranged north- 

 ward to Wisconsin. Australia, New Guinea, and South America 

 are especially rich in members of the parrot tribe. 



There is always a good representation of these birds in the Na- 

 tional Zoological Park. With the exception of a few hardy species, 

 all are exhibited in the bird house. In one outdoor cage may be 

 seen several species of cockatoos, including the bare-eyed (Kakatoe 

 gymnopis), the beautiful roseate (K. roseicapilla), and the sulphur- 

 crested (K. galerita), and the red-and-yellow-and-blue macaw (Ara 

 macao). The cockatoos are native to the Australian region and the 

 Philippine Islands. They are handsome birds, but their shrill 

 shrieks are unpleasant to hear. Several other species are shown in 

 the bird house, including the white (K. alba) , the great red-crested 

 (K. moluccensis) , and the beautiful rosy-tinted Leadbeater's cocka- 

 too (K. leadbeateri) . 



The macaws are tropical American birds, mostly of large size and 

 gaudy plumage. In addition to those in the outside cage, other 

 species, including the yellow-and-blue (Ara ararauna), the Mexican 

 green (A. meoeicana), the severe (A. severa), and Cassin's (A. auri- 

 collis), may be seen in the bird house. The latter is a very rare 

 species, our specimen of which was collected in 1922 by the Mulford 

 Biological Explorations of the Amazon Basin, in Bolivia. A dimin- 

 utive species is Hahn's macaw (Diopsittaca hahni). 



The thick-billed parrot (Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha) is the only 

 member of the parrot group, excepting the almost extinct Carolina 

 parakeet, known to occur in the United States. At intervals a num- 

 ber of years apart, flights of these birds arrive in the mountains of 

 southern Arizona, coming out of Mexico. 



A group of parrots known as the Amazons occur in tropical Amer- 

 ica. There are about 50 species known, the greater part of which 

 are green with red markings in some part of the plumage. They 

 are common cage species and include some of the best of " talkers." 

 Unlike the macaws, all have short tails. The collection now contains 

 14 species of this group. 



An African species which is considered to be fully equal to some 

 of the Amazons as a talker is the gray parrot (Psittftcw erithacus). 

 It is an ashy gray in color, with black wing feathers and red tail. 

 A very attractive group of parrots, many species of which are 

 popular as cage birds, is the group known as the parakeets. These 

 are all small birds, some of them actually diminutive. One of the 

 commonest forms kept as a pet is the shell parakeet, or Australian 

 grass parakeet (Melopsittacus undvlatus). This species breeds in 

 captivity, nesting in a small box placed within its inclosure. In a 

 wild state it is said to flock by thousands and spends a considerable 

 portion of the time on the ground, feeding upon the seeds of grasses. 



