48 



PHYSICAL CHARACTERS 



the twentieth, if it were cold ; at which time they' 

 received a very thick covering of soft, pale, slate- 

 gray coloured down. It was not till the thirtieth 

 day that the feathers began to appear, which were 

 not perfected for ten days thereafter. They aban-' 

 doned the nest when three months old, at which 

 time they could feed themselves ; for to this period 

 they were fed by the parent birds, who disgorge 

 the food from their bills in the manner of Pigeons. 

 At six months, their plumage had all the lustre 

 and beauty of the adult birds ; but they seemed 

 not to reach their full maturity till from twelve to 

 fifteen months. 



The success attending the pairing of these birds, 

 is supposed to have resulted from their having 

 been provided with a nesting-place, suited to their 

 habits. 



A small barrel was procured, and pierced, towards 

 the third of its height, with a hole, of about six 

 inches in diameter. In the bottom was placed a 

 quantity of saw-dust, three inches in thickness. On 

 this the female laid her eggs, and sat till they were! 

 hatched. 



In the month of April, 1822, M. de. Gabriac put 

 together a pair of Peacock Parrots, (Psittacus^ 

 Guyanesis,) from South America, and endeavoured > 

 to make them breed. On the 18th May following, 

 an egg was discovered in their nest ; three days 

 after, a second ; then a third, and a fourth, with 

 the same interval as that observed between the 

 laying of the first and second. Two of these eggs 



