Foreign Birds at the Crystal Palace. 149


Sydney, who also exhibited a specimen of the rarer Blue-banded

Grass - Parrakeet (Neophe?na ve?iusta), which the Judge did not

deign to notice. Mr. H. Cooper received the second with a nice

pair of Red-vented Blue-bonnets (Psephotus hcematorrhous), a

species which has recently been imported more freely than the

better-known Yellow-vented form (P. xanthorrhous). A Varied

Lorikeet, Barnards, Crimson - winged, Iyineolated, and Kings

Parrakeets were also present.


The most conspicuous exhibit in the class for Parrots was

a fine pair of Banksian Cockatoos belonging to Sir C. Lawes

Wittewronge, Bart. This exhibitor, however, was very un-

fortunate. The male was a magnificent bird, the first adult

male specimen of this Cockatoo exhibited for many years, but

the female was not in quite such good trim, and as the two had

to be judged as one exhibit the Judge gave the first prize to a

single female of the same species, a well-known prize-winner,

in better condition than the female of the pair. Had the male

of the above pair been exhibited alone he would doubtless have

been awarded premier honours.


The class for Common Waxbills, Grassfinches etc. calls

for no comment, but that devoted to the rarer species contained

some interesting specimens. A fine male Violet-eared Waxbill,

in perfect trim, belonging to Mr. L- W. Hawkins, was awarded

first prize, while a Masked Firefinch (Lagonosticta larvala), sent

by the same exhibitor, came second. The third prize went to a

Black-headed Gouldian, certainly a very fine specimen but not to

be compared in rarity to Mr. Townsend's pair of Rufous-backed

Mannikius (see page 137), Mr. Hawkins' Tri-coloured Parrot-

Finches, or Mrs. Warren Vernon's Red-collared Whydah, these

three exhibits all being beaten also by a pair of Red-faced

Finches {Zonogastris melba) belonging to Mr. Hawkins, which

obtained fourth prize. The Rufous-backed Mannikin has not

been shown at the Palace for many years if, indeed, at all before.


The most interesting exhibit in the class for " Grosbeaks,

true Finches and Buntings" was a Rock Bunting (Fringillaria

iahapisi) sent by Mr. Townsend which received the second prize,

the first being awarded to a pair of Cuba Finches belongin-g-tQ-

Mr. L. W. Hawkins, who also obtained the third prize for a pair



