70 BED AND BLUE MACAW. 



pecks and tears them, above all those on the first joint of the pinion, 

 and it even makes holes in different parts of its body/' 



Poor dyspeptic Macaw, if the picture of your sufferings just quoted 

 had been drawn to-day, instead of a hundred years ago, it could not 

 have been more accurate. What then is the proper food for this 

 species? "Many bird-fanciers", continues our author, "say that the 

 best food for Parrots is simply the crumbs of white bread, well baked, 

 without salt, soaked in water, and then slightly squeezed in the hand. 

 But though this appears to agree with them pretty well, it is however 

 certain that now and then something else ought to be added." 



So, indeed, we should say! and Bechstein was of the same opinion, 

 for he goes on to remark: "I have observed that Parrots which are 

 thus fed are very thin, have hardly strength to bear moulting, and 

 sometimes even do not moult at all: in that case they become asthmatic, 

 and die of consumption.'''' 



Away then with "sop" and its inevitable concomitants of dirty sour 

 tins and diarrhasa: a Macaw fed on oats, canary seed, maize, and 

 hemp seed, with the addition, now and then, of a lunch biscuit, ripe 

 fruit of all sorts, a slice of carrot, turnip, potato, or even mangel 

 wurzel, will be healthy and his cage clean: on the ordinary diet usually 

 given in this country he is generally unhealthy, and always dirty, which 

 is not by any means the fault of the poor bird, but that of its master, 

 who has it in his power, by treating his Macaw more in conformity 

 with its natural habits, to correct the evils of which he complains in 

 connection with keeping it in captivity. 



The appearance of this Macaw, even when caged, or chained to a 

 perch, is such as to at once arrest the attention of the most indifferent 

 beholder; but when seen at liberty, in this country even, actively 

 climbing among the branches of a large tree, or wheeling round and 

 round in the sunshine, like an enormously exaggerated butterfly, he 

 ought to be "a joy for ever", for that he is "a thing of beauty", 

 few, we imagine that have ever seen a perfect specimen of his race, 

 will be ready to deny. 



The head, neck, breast, belly, thighs, top of the back, and the upper 

 wing coverts, are brilliant vermilion. The lower part of the back and 

 the rump are light blue. The scapulars and large wing coverts are a 

 mixture of blue, yellow, and green. The naked cheeks are covered 

 with wrinkled whitish skin. The under surface of all the tail feathers 

 is red. 



The female bears a general resemblance to her mate, but the colours 

 of her plumage are of a duller shade than his. 



This fine bird is a native of South America, abounding in the 



