coverts, indi-o blue ; under tail coverts, red; tail, dark green; irides, black; feet, dark grey. The young 
resemble their mothers till the second year, when the males begin to develop the adult plumage. From the fact 
thai they arrive at maturity ao slowly, it follows, they live to a great age; though heat is far more inimical to 
their general health than cold, they belong to temperate and tropical climates. 
Habitats: Port Denison, Wide Bay District (Queensland), Richmond and Clarence River Districts (New 
South Wales), Victoria. 
GENUS PTISTES.— Winnowers. 
nnHESE Parrots differ sufficiently in Form and colouring from the Aspromictus to warrant their being classed 
BS ;i distinct genus. They have, in proportion to their size, largely-developed wings, which produce a very 
laboured flight, quite dissimilar from the general skimming motion of the Psittacidce, and it is hence that 
thej derive the generic name of Ptistes or Winnowers. Up to the present only three species are known, two of 
which are Australian; tlie third is the Ptistes vulneratus, and comes from Timor. In the voyage of the 
" Astrolabe" this last species figured as the Psittacus enjtliropterus. 
PTTSTES ERYTHROPTERTJS. 
RED-WINGED LOBY. Genus: Ptistes. 
AM >NG our many gorgeously beautiful Parrots, the Red-Winged Lory is one of the most splendid varieties. 
In the simplicity of its red and green livery there are combined such resplendent tints as both dazzle and 
refresh the eye by their contrasting harmonies. There is a fine* diapason of colours, from the vivid 
gas-green of the head and neck, through the very dark warm grey of the back, to the patch of scarlet in the 
wings, against which it is sharply silhouetted. Appreciably smaller than the well-known King Parrot, it is 
far more beautiful both in the higher accentuation of colour and in contour ; and words would utterly fail in 
conveying an idea of the effect of its brilliant plumage when thrown into strong contrast against the soft 
silver-green foliage of the wattles, especially when the flock contains a larger proportion of adult males, 
whose scarlet shoulders, set in a frame-work of vivid green, go flashing to and fro in the sunlight. 
Distributed throughout Queensland, the Ptistes erythropterus is not numerous near the sea-board, 
preferring the rolling myall plains of the interior, where the acacia pendula stretches in extensive belts, usually 
over marshy country. Here it may be seen in companies of from six to eight, or in flocks of far greater numbers, 
seeking out and devouring a scaly bug-like insect which infests the acacias, feasting upon the berry or drupe of a 
species of loranthus (a parasite of the mistletoe family), or the pollen of flowers. Caterpillars, too, may be 
included in its diet, as they have been found in the crops of the Platycerci. 
Different authorities speak so differently of the natural disposition of the Red-Winged Parrakeet that it 
is hard to know whether it is being cruelly maligned or over-praised. According to some, it has a morose and 
indocile disposition, which makes it wary of the approach of strangers ; others say it has a gentle, quiet disposition, 
though they admit that it is quite capable of fighting fiercely at times with its mate. So it is quite evident that 
such conclusions should not be drawn from knowledge of stray individuals ; they probably have as much variety 
of temper as any other class of beings. 
