THE



Avicultural Magazine


THE JOURNAL OF THE

AVICULTURAL SOCIETY



Fourth Series.—V ol. XII.—No. 11 —All rights reserved. NOVEMBER, 1934.



NOTES ON THE CYANORHAMPHUS

PARRAKEETS


By Sydney Porter


The Cyanorhamphus Parrakeets form a very distinct genus and

are confined to the New Zealand region ; though some members are

found on far distant islands which are no doubt the last remaining

outposts of some vast continent which was submerged beneath the

Southern Pacific Ocean many eons ago.


These Parrakeets vary in size from slightly larger than a Budgerigar,

in the case of the New Zealand Alpine Parrakeet ( Cyanorhamphus

malherbei), to as large as a Pennant in Cyanorham'phus cooki from

Norfolk Island, which is the largest of the genus.


In colour they are not particularly striking, being more or less of

a uniform grass green marked with either red or yellow, and blue. These

Parrakeets are remarkable for the fact that they inhabit regions far

from the tropics and several species are confined to desolate, bleak,

and often treeless islands, where the species have become, owing to

the absence of trees, practically terrestrial.


Unfortunately civilized man has dealt very hardly with these birds

and several species are now extinct ; others are on the verge of

extermination, while none are in a flourishing condition. The two

commonest species, which were confined to the mainland and which were

found in great abundance before the advent of the white man to the



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