THE BLUE MOUNTAIN LORY, 



{Psittacus swainsonii.) 



There are a number of species of the 

 beautiful parrots commonly called the 

 lories or loriquets. All of them in- 

 habit the Australian region, including 

 Polynesia, and they are noted for their 

 brilliant colors. The name Lory is from 

 a Malayan word signifying parrot, and 

 is now used, with slight variation, in 

 many languages to indicate these par- 

 rots. One of their characteristics is a 

 peculiarity of the tongue which is pro- 

 vided with a brush instead of a fringe 

 at the top. This brush seems to be 

 simply an ''excessive development of 

 the papillae which are always found on 

 the lingual surface." 



The loriquets or lorikeets are smaller 

 birds than the lories and include the 

 species of our illustration. The Blue 

 Mountain Lory, or Swainson's Loriquet 

 as it is sometimes called, is an inhabitant 

 of the eastern portion of Australia and 

 ranges from Cape York to Victoria. It 

 is also said to inhabit Tasmania. While 

 the colonists usually call it the Blue 

 Mountain Lory, they also call it the 

 Blue Mountaineer. It is one of the 

 handsomest of Australian parrots, and 

 is a general favorite of all who frequent 

 the forests of its range. This Lory may 

 attain a total length of twelve inches, 

 of which its tail forms nearly one-half. 

 It is a bird of arboreal habits and sel- 

 dom descends to the ground. Its food, 

 when obtainable, consists of pollen and 

 nectar, but it will also eat seeds, and in- 

 sects w^hen food to its liking cannot be 

 obtained. The Blue Mountain Lories 

 will feed almost exclusively on honey 

 when that food is plentiful. It is said 

 that they will so gorge themselves with 

 honey that when shot it is no uncom- 

 mon sight to see it stream from their 

 mouths. 



The Blue Mountain Lories are gen- 



erally seen in small flocks, but during 

 their migrations these flocks may unite 

 into one which consists of a very large 

 number of birds which fly at great 

 heights. During flight, their notes con- 

 sist of loud and unpleasant cries. An 

 observer says, these birds are "migrants 

 to and from different districts, and their 

 migrations are regulated by the state of 

 the blossoms of the gums and honey- 

 suckles upon which they feed; not that 

 they ever entirely left our forests, for I 

 rarely at any time went out without see- 

 ing a pair or so. But the large flocks 

 of them only come at such times as the 

 trees are full of honey, and depart as 

 suddenly as they come. They are al- 

 ways in larger or smaller flocks, do not 

 associate with the other parrots, and 

 are never seen feeding on the ground." 

 While these birds are active and their 

 antics are interesting, they do not make 

 desirable pets, for they are not only 

 very noisy, but also voice a frequent 

 and "abominable" shriek. It is also very 

 difficult to keep them alive in captivity 

 for any length of time without great 

 care and almost constant attention. 

 They are said to possess a very quarrel- 

 some disposition and shows a great 

 antipathy towards other parrots which 

 they will attack and often kill. This, 

 however, seems to be only a family ani- 

 mosity for they do not disturb other 

 birds. 



The Lories nest in the hollow of trees 

 where three or four eggs are laid. The 

 period of incubation lasts for about 

 twenty-one days and the male is said to 

 assist the female in this duty. While 

 these birds are beautiful and interesting 

 to watch, there must be a perfect bed- 

 lam of discordant noise in a forest 

 which is frequented by a large number 

 of them. 



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