1 874 THE PARROT TRIBE 



it is referred by Count Salvador! to the present family. It differs from all the other 

 members of the family in its narrow and pointed tail feathers, of which the middle 

 pair are much longer than the others. The male measures about twelve and one- 

 half inches, rather more than half of which is taken up by the tail. Its coloration, 

 without being very striking, is pleasing. The prevailing hue is dark gray, becom- 

 ing much paler on the upper tail coverts; the forehead and cheeks are lemon yellow, 

 while the feathers of the crest, which cannot be depressed, are yellow at the base 

 and gray above. A bright patch of reddish orange on the ear coverts occupies the 

 middle of the yellow area, and the median and greater coverts, as well as a portion 

 of the secondaries of the wings are ornamented with a broad band of white. The 

 female lacks the brilliant head colors of her consort. The cockateel is found all over 

 Australia, with the exception of Northeastern Queensland, and associates in flocks 

 of considerable size. The female lays from five to seven, or even nine eggs, in the 

 incubation of which the male takes a full share. Strong in its flight, the cockateel 

 is a somewhat restless, and at the same time a noisy bird. Mr. W. T. Greene 

 writes that, "taken when about half-fledged from the nest, and brought up 

 by hand, or rather by mouth, the young male cockateel becomes the most charm- 

 ing pet that can be imagined; in point of fact, there is scarcely any accomplish- 

 ment that he cannot be taught. He will perform all manner of little tricks, 

 such as kissing his mistress, pretending to be dead, flying out of window, 

 and returning at the word of command; he will also learn to repeat, with great 

 distinctness, not only words, but short sentences, and even to imitate, in a discon- 

 nected and rambling fashion, it is true, the chattering of his compatriot, the bud- 

 gerigar, or the warbling of his rival, the canary." These birds will breed freely in 

 confinement, and they have the advantage of an equable and contented disposition, 

 which enables them to live peaceably with the other inhabitants of an aviary, 

 whether great or small. Indeed, so easy going in disposition is the cockateel, that 

 it will frequently allow itself to be hustled about and bullied by its smaller cousin, 

 the budgerigar, the description of which comes later on in the chapter 



THE TYPICAL PARROTS 

 Family PSITTACID^E 



With the exception of the peculiar owl parrot of New Zealand, the whole of 

 the remaining members of the order are included in a single family, which comprises 

 a far larger number of genera and species than either of the others. The group 

 is one very difficult to define; but, with the exception of the Uvaean parrot and 

 a kindred species, all its members are distinguished from the cockatoos by the ab- 

 sence of a crest; while in the skull the ring of bone is generally imperfect, and if 

 complete it always lacks the posterior process characterizing that part of the cock- 

 atoos. The members of this family have a very wide geographical distribution, 

 ranging over the whole of the tropical regions, and being the only representatives 



