168 PSITTACUS ERITHACUS. 



iris dark grey instead of pale yellow. They leave the nest when about four 

 weeks old, but may be seen looking outside the hole some time before they 

 are able to fly. They grow quickly ; and the feathers get gradually paler. 

 When two months old, the first moulting begins, which lasts about five 

 weeks, after which the plumage is similar to that of the old birds, although 

 the edges of the feathers are not so pale and the cheeks and forehead not so 

 white as in old individuals. The iris changes gradually and slowly ; the 

 eyes are dark for more than seven months. The feathers, when wet, appear 

 of a dark bluish grey with a purple gloss. 



"The value of a Grey Parrot on Prince's Island is one dollar (45. 2d.) 

 for an old bird, and half that sum for a young one. There are not many sold 

 on the island, owing to the heavy freight charged, being about 55. for each 

 individual as soon as it is shipped." 



Again, " On Prince's Island is a very lofty mountain, reaching some 

 1200 feet above the level of the sea, and called by the natives 'Pico de 

 Papagaio,' or Peak of the Parrots. On the slope of this mountain, and 

 extending far up its side, is a magnificent forest. The trees are of great size 

 and height ; and their trunks and branches give support to the Lianos 

 and other climbing plants, which hang about them in luxuriant folds. The 

 density of the forest is so great that it is only with the greatest difficulty and 

 toil the explorer can force a passage through it ; while to the Parrots, who 

 come up there every night, it presents no obstacle, but gives them, under the 

 shelter of its thick foliage, a secure and pleasant resting-place." 



In 'The Ibis,' Jan. 1874, 3rd ser. vol. iv. p. 56, Mr. Herbert Taylor 

 Ussher (who did not observe the bird nesting), in his Notes on the Gold 

 Coast, speaks as follows : — 



"PsiTTACus ERYTHACus, L. : Sharpc, p. 19. 



" The finest specimens of the Grey Parrot are brought down from the 

 distant forests of Akim, in Fantee, to the towns of the Cape Coast and Accra, 

 where they meet with a ready sale and are purchased in considerable 

 numbers at prices varying from half a dollar to one dollar a piece by the 



