on Hooded and Golden-Shouldered Parrakeets. 109



Mr. North described a parrakeet which agrees perfectly with P.

cucullatus, i.e. as having the crown black, not chestnut.


Mr. Gregory Mathews, who is publishing a great work on the

Birds of Australia regards North’s P. cucullatus as synonymous with

Collett’s P. dissimilis. Mr. Seth-Smith adds that the specimen

from which the latter author’s description was taken, was probably

immature, which would possibly account for the crown being dark

chestnut instead of black. “ This being so,” he adds, “ we must in

future adopt Professor Collett’s name of Psepholus dissimilis for

this species.”


Now to begin with, with all due respect to Professor Collett,

dissimilis seems to me both inapropriate and non-descriptive, for the

word merely means dissimilar-to or different. So that if one w 7 ere

to translate the bird’s name into English and call it according to that

translation, when any inexperienced stranger perchance on visiting

my aviaries were to ask me the name of the hooded parrakeets, I

should have to say 11 That is the dissimilar’ parrakeet, and it is

“ called so because it is rather different from what is known as the

golden-shouldered ’ parrakeet.” The Hooded Parrakeet is an

appropriate distinction, and it seems a pity as it is known as P.

cucullatus (= hooded) to drop that title. However, I ought to be

able to prove this question, having four young of this species in

nestling plumage, which as yet resemble the adult female.


When they moult it remains to be seen as to whether the

males at once acquire the black hoods or dark chestnut. If the

former colour appears, I think it will undoubtedly prove that P.

cucullatus is not synonymous with P. dissimilis, and this will be a

fact of great interest. Neither can I help feeling that it will he so,

as it is surely very unusual for parrakeets to assume a half-way

colouring on the head, with the rest of the plumage as found in the

adult bird. I could imagine the hood attaining the full colour

perhaps rather gradually, that is not entirely black (or chestnut) at

the first change of feathers, but not chestnut the first year, and then

black. Nous verrons !


Since the above was written I have received the following

note from Mr. Blaauw:—“ I had the pair of Hooded Parrakeets

“ which you have, before they were in colour, they looked fike



