ARA. 301 



screeching sound from the field. If the danger becomes serious, 

 the sentinels leave the trees tittering their loud cries and 

 immediately the whole flock rises from the field and makes swilt 

 flight to the nearest wood for shelter. These birds are much 

 sought after by the natives, who make ornaments of their feathers. 

 Schomburgk also writes [op. cit. iii. p. 72'J): — Tliis beautiful Ara 

 is found throughout the interior of British Guiana and appears 

 periodically on the coast, decoyed thither by the ripe fig-trees, 

 this being the onlv season when it is found near the coast. Tliev 

 frequent, as a rule, the dense woods of high altitudes and appear to 

 avoid the settlements and cultivated grounds. They live in pairs 

 or small flocks, and he did not remember ever having seen solitarv 

 indivi luals. They nest in hollow trees, or holes in branches — if 

 the latter are too small they enlarge them with their strong bills ; 

 the same site is used for vears. When lirooding the long tail 

 projects from the nesting-hole, which enables the observer to find 

 the nest more easilv. It lavs two eggs. The flesh of the voung 

 is good, but that of the adult is somewhat tough, though when 

 boiled it makes a piquant soup, which has an onion-like flavour. 

 This bird is much hunted by the natives, who use their feathers to 

 decorate themselves and also their arrows. The "' ]\lacusis^^ call 

 it Cu'ijari and the "' W'arraus '' Aj>ahaera. 



191. Ara cMoroptera. 



Red-axd-Yellow 3Iacaw. 



Ara chloroptera Gray, List Psitt. Bnt. Mus. •^. 26, 1859 (Guiana) ; 

 Salvin, Ibis, 1&S6, p. 66 (Bartica Grove, Camacusa) ; Quelch, 

 Tunehri {'2) iv. p. 326, 1890 ( Berbice River); Salvad. Cat. B. 

 Brit. Mus. XX. p. 156, 1891 ; Lloyd, Timehri (2) ix. p. 274, 1895 

 Oiabits) ; id. op. cit. xi. p. 7, 1897 ( nesting- ha bits) j Bi-abourne <fc 

 Chubb, B. S. Amer. i. p. 79, no. 735, 1912. 



Macrocercus macao (nee Linn.), Cab. in Schomb. Reis. Guian. iii. p. 730, 

 1818. 



"Couarries," '^ Red-and-J3Iue Macaw" (C. A. Lloyd). 



Adult female. Head, neck, mantle, basal portion of tail, lesser 

 upper wing-coverts, and entire under surface deep red ; median 

 and greater uj»per wing-coverts, bastard-wing, primary-coverts, 

 and quills blue like the tips of tl-.e tail-feathers ; lower back and 

 u))per tail-coverts also blue, but paler. 



Total length 020 mm., culmcn i>l, wing 410, tail a3(>, tarsus [\'l, 

 middle too and claw do. 



