ORDER SCANSORES. 563 



create in their native country only. Many parrots, however, 

 were born in Europe, as far back as 1740 and 1741. In 1801, 

 some Amazon's parrots were bom at Rome. M. Lamouroux 

 has given us considerable details respecting the broods of two 

 blue maccaws, that were at Caen some years ago. These birds, 

 in four years and a half, from the month of March 1818 to the 

 end of August 1822, laid sixty-two eggs, in nineteen broods. 

 Of this number, twenty-five eggs produced young ones, of 

 which ten only died. The others lived, and became perfectly 

 accustomed to the climate. They laid eggs at all seasons ; and 

 the broods became more frequent and more productive, in the 

 course of time ; and in the end much fewer were lost. The 

 number of eggs in the nest used to vary, six having been to- 

 gether at a time ; and these maccaws were seen to bring up 

 four young ones at once. These eggs took from twenty to 

 twenty-five days to be hatched, like those of our common hens. 

 Their form was that of a pear, a little flatted, and their length 

 equal to that of a pigeon's egg. It was only between the fif- 

 teenth and five and twentieth day tliat the young ones became 

 covered with a very thick down ; soft, and of a whitish slate- 

 grey. The feathers did not begin to make their appearance 

 until towards the thirtieth day, and took two months to acquire 

 their full growth. It was a dozen or fifteen months before the 

 young arrived to the size of their parents, but their plumage 

 had all its beauty from six months old. At three months old 

 they abandoned the nest, and could eat alone ; up to this 

 period they had been fed by the father and mother, which 

 disgorged the food from their bill, in the same manner as 

 pigeons do. 



In all probability, the success of this education was owing 

 to the care wliich was taken in providing these birds with a 

 suitable nest. This consisted of a small barrel, pierced, to- 

 wards the third of its height, with a hole of about six inches 

 in diameter, and the bottom of which contained a bed of saw- 

 dust three inches thick, on which the eggs were laid and 



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