THE CAGE-BIRDS OF CALCUTTA. 575 



the action is so universal with these Cockatoos that it may fairly be put down 

 as a characteristic piece of intelligence, though their tameness is, no doubt,, 

 due to their being hand-reared. 



The Cockatpel (^Calopsittacus novce'hollatidice') is often imported and 

 generally to be bought; it has bred in the Zoological Garden here, I have 

 noticed that this bird's plumage is remarkably impervious to wet ; water 

 poured on it glides off as from a Duck's back. 



Family Psittacid^. 



The cage-brid of India, par excellence , and one of the longest-and-best-known 

 anywhere, is of course the familiar Eing-Parrakeet {Palceornis torquatus), 

 which is popular both with natives and Europeans, and may be met with 

 chained or caged, in almost every street. Hundreds cf fledged and unfledged 

 young, and of wild-caught adults of both sexes, come into the hands of the 

 dealers. Many o£ the latter are more or less heavily splashed with yellow • 

 while perfect lutinos are far from rare and are extremely beautiful birds 



The males in these cases retain the pink neck-ring, and the bill is always 

 red. Such birds fetch very high prices— ^about eighty rupees and con- 

 sequently seldom reach Europe, though some have been exhibited in 

 the London Parrot-house. No attempt has, however, been made to breed 

 the variety in captivity, and the dealers depend for their supply on chance 

 " sports." 



Yet the form probably has the elements of permanence in it, for Mr, Rut- 

 ledge assures me that he knows of a case of a pair of normally-coloured birds 

 which always nest in the same tree and always produce a yellow brood the 

 young being eagerly watched until fit to be taken. Lately I have seen a 

 particularly curious semi-lutino, not splashed, but of a shade midway between 

 green and .yellow throughout. 



Nearly as numerous as the common Farrakeet is the larger "Rock-Parrot " 

 (P. nepalensis), but most, if not all, of the examples are, I think, brought in 

 as young birds. In the Tiretta Bazaar there are at the time of writing 

 (February) a good many examples cf this species still so young as to show the 

 dark irides which when immature this and the common King-neck exhibit. I 

 have never seen a lutino of this large Parrakeet. 



The " Blos3om-head " (P cyanocephalus) is common in the Bazaar, but is 

 not so popular a cage-bird as the Ring-neck. The Eastern form (P. rosa) is 

 also often to be seen. Another common Palceornis is P. fasciatus, but only 

 quite lately have P. magnirostriSf P. schisticeps, and P. columhoides appeared 

 here, so far as I am aware, and then there were only a few individuals, except 

 of the last species, of which a good many pairs arrived, and some are still on 

 sale. P. finschi I have seen only once ; the specimen was secured for the 

 London Zoological Gardens by Mr. Harper. 



The common little Lorikeet is often to be met with, and the Malayan Lori- 

 culus galgulus is frequently imported, both being in favour as inmates of 

 minor aviaries. I have only once seen L. indicus. The only small foreign 



