PAL^ORNINiE. 263 



Gmel.— Swains, Zool. 111., n. s., pi. 16— P. mystaceus, Shaw— 

 P. nigrlvostris, HoDGS. (young female)^ — Madna (i. e. pleasing), 

 Bengal — Kajla^ (from the black forehead,) H., in Bengal — Imrit- 

 bhela, in Nepal. v 



The Eed-breasted Parrakeet. 



JDescr. — Adult male, head and cheeks lavender purple ; a 

 narrow band of black on the forehead, extending to the eyes; a 

 broad black band on the chin and sides of the neck ; nape and back 

 of neck, bright verdigris or emerald-green ; the rest of the upper 

 plumage grass-green; a large red-patch on the wing, formed by most 

 of the lesser and some of the median coverts; the rest of the wino- 

 bluish-green, the quills edged paler on their outer margin ; centre 

 tail-feathers blue, edged with green at their base, and narrowly 

 tipped with yellowish-white ; the two next pairs bluish on their 

 outer webs ; the others mostly green, and all narrowly tipped with 

 yellowish ; beneath, from the chin to the lower abdomen, fine pale 

 vinous-red, tinged with peach-bloom next the black collar, and 

 in patches elsewhere ; the lower part of the abdomen, vent, and 

 under tail-coverts, blue-green. 



Bill with the upper mandible fine red ; the lower one dusky. 



Length about 17 inches ; wing 7 ; tail 10 ; bill at gape 1 ; 

 height Ig-. 



The female merely differs from the male by having a black bill 

 at first, which changes to red in old or fully adult females. 



This Parrakeet is found in the sub-Himalayan region, and, it is 

 said, in the Rajmahal hills; but I think this is somewhat doubtful, 

 and it certainly does not extend into Central India. Out of India it 

 is abundant in Assam, Sylhet, Arakan, and Tenasserim, extending 

 into the Malay peninsula and Java. In some part of Lower Bengal, 

 as in Gorruckpore and Rungpore, it visits the plains, when the rice 

 is ripe, in large flocks. It is brought to Calcutta, caged, in great 

 numbers, from Tipperah, Chittagong, and other places to the 

 East, &c., and is rather a favorite with the natives. Its call is 

 much more agreeable than that of torquatus or Alexandvi. At 

 'I'hyet-myo in upper Burmah, in JMay, 1 observed large flocks 

 of what I presume was this species, though the only specimens 1 



