COCKATOOS. 357 
termed “pen and ink.” Lastly the howls grew fainter, as the dog was 
supposed to be limping away, and you really seemed to hear him turn the 
corner and retreat into the distance. The memory of the bird must have 
been most tenacious, and its powers of observation far beyond the common 
order ; for he could not have been witness to such a canine accident more 
than once. 
The food of this Parrot consists chiefly of seeds of various kinds, and 
in captivity may’be varied to some extent. Hemp-seed, grain, canary- 
seed, and the cones of fir-trees are favourite articles of diet with this bird, 
Of the cones it is especially fond, nibbling them to pieces when they are 
young and tender ; but, when they are old and ripe, breaking away the hard 
scales and scooping out the seeds with its very useful tongue. Hawthorn 
berries are very good for the Parrot, as are several vegetables. These, how- 
ever, should be given with great caution, as several, such as parsley and 
chick-weed, are exceedingly hurtful to the bird. 
When proper precautions are taken, the Parrot is one of our hardiest 
cage-birds, and will live to a great age even in captivity. Some of these 
birds have been known to attain an age of sixty or seventy years, and one 
which was seen by Le Vaillant had attained the patriarchal age of ninety- 
three. At sixty its memory began to fail; and at sixty-five the moult 
became very irregular, and the tail changed to yellow. At ninety it wasa 
very decrepit creature, almost blind and quite silent, having forgotten its 
former abundant stock of words. 
The general colour of this bird is a very pure ashen grey, except the tail, 
which 1s deep scarlet. 
Two species of GREEN PARROT are tolerably common, the one being the 
Festive Green Parrot, and the other the Amazon Green Parrot. 
The AMAZON GREEN PaRROT is the 
species most commonly seen in England. 
It is a native of Southern America, and 
especially frequents the banks of the 
Amazon. It isnot, however, so retiring in - 
its habits as most Parrots, and will often 
leave the woods for the sake of preying 
upon the orange plantations, among which 
it works great havoc. Its nest is made in 
the decayed trunks of trees. 
As a general fact, it is not so apt at 
learning and repeating phrases as the Grey 
Parrot, but I have known more than one 
instance where its powers of speech could 
hardly be exceeded, and very seldom 
rivalled. One of these birds, which used 
to live in a little garden into which my 
window looked, was, on our first entrance 
into the house, the cause of much per- 
plexity to ourselves and the servants. The sy_pHur-CRESTED COCKATOO. 
nurserymaid’s name was Sarah, and the (( acatua galerita.) 
unfortunate girl was continually running up 
and down stairs, fancying herself called by one of the children in distress. 
The voice of the Parrot was just that of a child, and it would call Sarah 
im every imaginable tone, varying from a mere enunciation of the name as if 
in conversation, to angry remonstrance, petulant peevishness, or sudden 
terror. : 
‘THE COCKATOOS are very familiar birds, as several species are commcn 
