THK RED-CRESTED CARDINAL. 73 



THE RED-CRESTED CARDINAL. 



Paroaria cncullata, LATH. 



THIS lively, and somewhat excitable, bird inhabits Southern Brazil 

 and the Argentine Republic to Bolivia : its brightness both of 

 disposition and colouring make it a favourite cage-bird. The head, 

 crest, and throat, are bright scarlet in the adult bird ; the upper 

 surface generally is slate grey, darker on the nape and tail-coverts ; 

 the feathers of the nape and mantle are ornamented with elongated 

 oval white central spots ; the sides of the neck and under parts generally 

 are white ; the flight feathers of the wings are black, edged externally 

 with ashy grey ; the tail feathers black, fringed with grey ; the sides 

 of the body and flanks are slightly stained with grey ; wing and tail 

 feathers below dark slate grey : beak almost white, dusky on the 

 dorsal part of the upper mandible, legs sooty grey, iris black. Length 

 seven and a half inches. 



The female is like the male, but slightly less brilliant in colouring ; 

 beak longer, with culmen less arched. Young birds have the scarlet 

 of the head and throat represented by dirty buff. Mr. E. W. White, 

 in a paper on birds from the Argentine Republic observes, that it is 

 " a tolerably common bird in the upper Riverine provinces : and much 

 kept as a cage-bird in Buenos Ayres : as it has a very fine whistle, 

 almost rivalling that of the English Blackbird in power, but not in 

 variety." 



It passes my comprehension how Englishmen, when travelling in 

 America, can thus libel the birds of their native land. I have had 

 four pairs of Red-crested Cardinals at various times, and those which 

 I first possessed did not sing at all, but simply cocked their heads on 

 one side and uttered a clear whistle ; occasionally with two notes, 

 but usually only one ; which I translated as " Well ! " evidently used 

 in the sense of "Halloa /" This I formerly supposed to be the limit 

 of the bird's power, as a vocalist ; though it is evidently only its call- 

 note. 



A bird which I imported from La Plata in nestling plumage, and 

 which subsequently came into grand colour ; first introduced me to 



