THE TALKING BIRDS 



217 



inhabits the United States. The Carolina 

 Parrakeet 1 once ranged northward in summer 

 to Maryland, Lake Erie and Iowa, and as far 

 west as Colorado; but now all that is only so 

 much history. The hand of the destroyer has 

 been heavy upon this pretty bird. To-day it is 

 found only in a few localities in Florida, and 

 the prospects are that in a very few years it 

 will be totally extinct. To illustrate: In 1893, 

 a colony of about thirty birds which nested 

 on the Sebastian River was completely destroyed 

 in one night by a local hunter, who captured the 

 entire flock, and sent the birds to a New York 

 dealer, in whose hands all those which reached 

 him alive died in a short time. 



In color this bird has a bright green body, 

 and yellow head and neck. It feeds upon fruit 

 and seeds, and nests in hollow trees. 



The Macaws are large, showy birds with 

 very long, pointed tails, and the most awful 

 voices for screeching ever made for feathered 

 folk. They are found only in the New World 

 from Mexico to Paraguay, and in the Andes up, 

 to 10,000 feet. Either in flight, or at rest in the 

 green tree-tops, they are exceedingly showy 

 and attractive birds, and to find a flock in the 

 depths of a tropical forest is an event to be re- 

 membered. In hunting macaws in the delta of 

 the Orinoco, about every fourth bird that was 



1 Co-nu'rus carolinensis . Length, about 12 inches. 



mortally wounded would hook its beak over a 

 small branch, die, and hang there until I would 

 be reluctantly compelled to make my fellow-col- 

 lector, who was a good climber, climb up to the 

 bird and throw it down, with much anger and 

 unnecessary violence. 



It is a pity that such beautiful birds should 

 have such ear-splitting, nerve-racking voices. 

 Although they seldom can be taught to talk, 

 never cease to scream until dead, and are very 

 apt to bite most unexpectedly, they are often 

 kept as household pets. 



The Blue-and-Yellow Macaw, 2 orange yel- 

 low below and cobalt blue above, is one of the 

 species most frequently seen in captivity. In 

 the bird-stores of New York, they sell at from 

 $10 to $15 each. The Red-and-Blue Macaw 

 is another common species. The beautiful plum- 

 colored bird occasionally seen is the Hyacinthine 

 Macaw, from Brazil. 



The Cockatoos are mostly — but not all — 

 snow-white birds, with lofty and beautiful tri- 

 angular crests which can be erected at will, with 

 striking effect. They inhabit Australia, Celebes, 

 the Philippines and the southern islands of the 

 Malay Archipelago. They are easily tamed, talk 

 readily, take kindly to training, and become 

 very affectionate and satisfactory companions. 



2 Ar'a ar-a-rau'na. Length, about 30 inches, of 

 which the tail constitutes about 18 inches. 



