Book II. 0%3\£1T HO LO CjY. up 



fo tame, that it would put its Bill into his Mouth and Ears without doing him any 

 harm, and would put in order the hairs of his beard if difcompofed : And if any- 

 one elfe offered to touch him, it would prefently fnap or peck at him, as if it had 

 been fome Dog. Furthermore ( faith he ) in.the year of Chrift 1605. "Jacob Plateau 

 fent me the figure of a certain Parrot, drawn to the life in colours, the like whereto 

 feeing I have not as yetfeen, nor remember to have met with any Where defcribed, I 

 thought fit to fubjoyn the figure of it Printed, in this AuBarium to my Hiftory of 

 Exotics. He wrote that he had kept it above two years, that it was of the bigneM 

 of a Pigeon : That it had a Head almoft like a Hawks, to wit, covered with fuch co- 

 loured feathers : Sparkling Eyes. The Neck and Breaft were befet with particoloured 

 feathers 5 which when it was angry, or any one molefted it, by bringing any Animal 

 near to the Cage in which it was (hut up, it would fet an end, fo that it feemed to 

 be in a manner crefted. Thofe feathers were of a reddifli colour, and in the out- 

 ward part, [ I fuppofe he means round the borders or edges ] of a moft elegant blue. 

 The feathers of the Belly were almoft of like colour, yet moreover clouded with 

 dusky. The feathers of the Back were green, and the mafter-f bathers of the Wings 

 bluifh. The Tail wascompofedof many green feathers, but not long. I could not 

 negleft to propofe to the Readers view a fmall fort of Parrot, brought thefe laft years 

 from JEthiopia and the places bordering on Manicongo, by the Holland Skippers, with 

 the figure of the Male, (but the Female is much more elegant, for there was one. 

 brought of both Sexes. ) The bulk of the body was equal in bignefs to a Chaffinch 1 

 That is, was two inches and an half long from the bottom of the Neck to the Rump. 

 All the feathers covering the body were of a green colour 5 among which yet there 

 appeared a manifeft difference : For thofe on the Back were deeper coloured 5 thofe 

 on the Belly paler. The flag-feathers of the Wings were three inches long 5 and 

 though on the upper fide 5 on that fide the (haft which hath the fhorter Villi, as far as 

 they cover one another, they were tin&ured with a deep greens yet on the other 

 fide which hath longer Villi, and on all the under-fide they were dusky or brown* 

 The feathers of the Tail were moft elegant, wellnigh two inches long, little lefs than 

 half an inch broad, on that part next the Rump of a green colour mingled with yel- 

 low, next of an elegant red, then of a black, and laft of all of a green. And thefe 

 three laft colours were diftindf from one another, as is to be feenin the Tail-feathers of 

 fome green Parrots, of the great kind [ called Maccam, ] But thefe feathers are 

 fcarcely feen unlefs when (he fpreads her Tail, becaufe they are covered with others 

 of the fame length, which are wholly green. The Neck is ftiortand thick: The fea- 

 thers covering the Head very fhort and green 5 except thofe on the crown above the 

 Bill, and on the whole throat, for they are of a lovely florid red colour. I fpeak of 

 the Male, for the feathers of the Female were of a paler red, and did not take up fo 

 large a fpace as in the Male. The Eyes were very black, the Bill thick and ftrongj 

 the upper Chap hooked and fharp-pointed, as in other forts of Parrots: Its colour 

 reddilh. The Legs fhort, fcarce attaining the length of half anjnch, covered with 

 aih-coloured fcales, as the feet of other common Parrots, and thofe divided into four 

 Toes 5 of which two flood forward, and were of unequal length, two backward, 

 and they alfo unequal : The fhorter, which were the inner, having two joynts, the 

 longer; which were the outer, three. The Claws Were white, and of a good length. 

 I obferved it to have a very fmall voice, and only to peep like a Chicken. It d elights 

 in company. _ When it eats, it doth not hold its meat in one foot, like other Parrots, 

 but picks up its meat with its Bill by jobbing : But its meat for the moft part is Canary 

 feed 5 for I obferved it to feed more willingly upon that than any other kind of Seed. 

 I law fome that were fo taught that they would pick up cruras of bread dipt or moift- 

 ned with water. Its drink is water. I obferved further in this bird, that the Fe- 

 males, when they grew old, would fcarce eat any meat, but what had been piekt 

 up by the Male, and kept a while in his Crop, and there mollified or macerated 5 the 

 which they received with their Bills, as young Pigeons are wont to be fed and nou* 

 rimed by the old ones. 



f VIL 



