18 LESSER LEMON- CRESTED COCKATOO. 



was singularly fortunate in the individual he possessed; but perhaps 

 it was we that were unfortunate, for Mr. Wiener corroborates the 

 account of this bird given by Dr. Russ, and in his charming, but too 

 brief, book on Foreign Birds, writes, "This Cockatoo (the Lesser 

 Lemon-Crest) becomes very tame and affectionate, is quite hardy, but 

 not as good a talker as the Rose-crested and Greater White-crested 

 Cockatoos (Psittacus Moluccensis and Psittacus leucolophus) , although 

 a much better linguist than the Australian Cockatoos." 



Bechstein also wrote of this bird: — "It comes from the same country 

 as the Great White Cockatoo, to which it yields neither in elegance, 

 intelligence, docility, nor mildness. It is fond of caresses, and returns 

 them with pleasure: all its motions are equally full of grace, delicacy, 

 and beauty." 



After that we feel that we are quite out of court, and must reverse 

 our judgment, merely remarking that birds have their several idiosyn- 

 crasies, and people do not half enough consider this; although there 

 is, of course, a certain character running through every species, thus 

 Cockatoos will be easily tamed, while Platycerci are shy; but, apart 

 from that, individuals differ immensely, and, as we have said, we 

 appear to have been exceptionally unfortunate in our experience with 

 several species, and think we must try again at the first opportunity. 



Writing of this bird, which he names the "Citron-crested Cockatoo", 



■ Mr. W. C. Gedney says: "these birds are much more docile and less 



excitable than their relations, the Great White Cockatoo" — by which 



latter Mr. Gedney means the Australian Lemon-Crested Cockatoo 



(Psittacus galeritus) . 



Very little is known concerning these birds in their wild state, 

 except that, like all the rest of the family, they- breed in the holes 

 of trees, where the female lays two or three white eggs on the bare 

 wood, and has, usually, two broods in the season: we are not aware 

 that they have ever bred in captivity, but we see no reason why they, 

 as well as many of their congeners, should not do so, if placed in 

 suitable quarters, with appropriate surroundings; whether it would be 

 worth anyone's while to make the attempt, except as a matter of 

 curiosity, is another question — we think not. Jardine, however, says: 

 "In captivity the female sometimes produces eggs, and we have now 

 specimens by us which were laid by one at rather peculiar periods, 

 namely: the 21st. of June, 21st. of September, and 21st. of December; 

 but whether this resulted from the peculiar economy of the bird, as 

 acted upon by the seasons, or was the effect of the confinement, we 

 are unable to determine." 



The fact of the bird laying every three months on - the same day 



