36



Arrival of the Splendid Grass Parrakeet



and habits. I am referring to what are to my mind very rare birds

for I have only seen three, the Black-chinned Yuhina. These tiny

birds appear to be quite hardy and at one time looked like going to

nest. This was obviously impossible as subsequently they were found

to be two hens. Their end was extraordinary. They were in a compart¬

ment to themselves and in the next compartment were a few Seedeaters.

It is only possible to attempt to reconstruct what took place.

Apparently the perch on which the Yuhinas were in the habit of sleeping

projected a few inches into the adjoining compartment. During the

night, presumably, a Parrot Finch dropped dead off its perch and in

falling must have hit the protruding end of the branch on which the

Yuhinas were roosting. The shock caused them to fall into the water

trough, where they were found dead in the morning.


There was certainly no more than \ in. of water in the trough,

so drowning can be ruled out. In any case the subsequent post

mortem could reveal no cause for death. Presumably, it must there¬

fore have been shock.


The third bird was in a very bad condition when purchased and

died shortly after.


One other point and this about Parrots. Restrictions are easily

imposed but it is far harder to obtain their removal. The ban on

Parrots owing to Psittacosis has been in force for some considerable-,

period now. Will it, like some of the relics of D.O.R.A., continue


ad infinitum ?



ARRIVAL OF THE SPLENDID GRASS

PARRAKEET


In the Magazine for November, 1931, the arrival was reported of

some half-dozen examples of Neophema splendida in Adelaide, and

since that we have read in the daily papers that a pair of these birds

was coming to England for His Majesty the King. These have now duly

arrived, having actually reached our shores on 9th January, and by the

kindness of Mrs. Fetherstonhaugh, who is taking charge of them, I

have had the privilege of seeing them, and they are certainly quite as

beautiful and in other ways as delightful as one had always pictured



