3)2 
Parrot -Finches. 
2. Millet and Canary seed is llie slaple food, very Fond of 
insects, and grecnfood (seeding grass and i lii ■kuccil ) in sTimmor. 
3. Canary and White Millet seed, sjnay^, ijrcenfood, and 
eight mealworms per pair daily. When rciMling yniuig, iusccli'.c mixture 
is su.p])lied anil the numl»r of mealworms inereascd (o foni'lecii per 
])air daily. 
4. The parents had aecess to milk-soji, inseetile mixture, green- 
food, mealw'orms, Canary, millet, and other seeds, also millet sprays — 
the birds practically partook of all. 
Nestling Plumage: This is apparently rather vari- 
able, as is evidenced by the following' descriptions of various 
aviculturists. 
1. Dull green above; throat, breast, and belly dingy yellow- 
brown, beak yellowish; no scarlet visible for the first few weeks. 
2. Dingy green; throat and breast dingy 3'ellowish-1)rown ; 
upper tail coverts and vent dull red. 
3. Comparison of two nests by Mr. W. R. Temple in 1908. 
First nest . three yoimg hatched June 14th, left nest July 5 — one young 
all green, the other two almost as bright as their parents. Second nest: 
Five young hatched June 25, left nest July 15 — were all green. 
Kemakks re Young: Very soon independent of their 
parents. 
Very precocious— Mr. W. R. Temple writes of four 
young which went to nest when little more than three months 
old; eacli couple laid a clutch of eggs, but made no attempt 
to inculiate; some of the eggs were fertile, as two were given 
to IX Gouldian Finch, and both hatched out. 
Those young Avithout red on the head, throat, etc., 
when they leave the nest, usually begin to show same in about 
six weeks, sooner in some cases. 
Sex Distinctions: Both male and female are very 
similai' and it needs a very keen eye to pick them out. In 
intlividual pairs, the male is usually more masculine in de- 
meanour and appearance; also his colours are usually inore 
intense and the scarlet areas a little larger tlian those of his 
mate. However, with the variability common to all species, 
the abovf distinctions are not of nuich value when trying to 
pick out a pair from a crowd. The beak of the female is 
a trifle more wedge -shajjed than that of the male, but it needs 
a keen eye to detect the difference. 
Mr. W. E. Temple adopts, what appears to the writer, 
a most excellent method, but this really applies to the private 
