Gerald Martindale — Bourke’s Parrakeets



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The well-known authority on foreign birds, Captain Eattigan, came

into possession of a pair of young Bourke’s freshly imported, but owing

to ill-health Captain Eattigan had to give up all his birds for a time

and place himself in the hands of a London specialist. He offered the

young Bourke’s to an eminent aviculturist, who, however, refused the

offer, claiming the hen had a broken wing. Captain Eattigan maintained

that it was a strain and not a fracture and that the bird would be

flying again in a short while. However, his offer was refused on the

ground that the hen would be very unlikely to breed successfully.


Captain Eattigan then suggested that I should take the birds, as

my aviary is a large one. As I had never possessed any Parrakeets

and had only a knowledge of Budgerigars, I was rather afraid of the

responsibility of the care of such valuable birds, especially as I had

read of their liability to crack their skulls, flying up against the wire

of the flight or against the ceiling of the bird-house. To place taut

string netting across a flight 30 feet by 24 feet we agreed was out of

the question, so we decided to let them take their chances. The hen,

at first, could only manage to reach the perch in the large cage I put

them in, but after a while, being given her complete liberty, she flew

better and now flies as well as the cock.


The first year the Bourke’s did not breed but, in February of the

following year, I placed a wooden box, 12 in. X 6 in. X 6 in., with

a block of peat in the bottom and very soon the hen took to the nest.

On 24th April she came off the nest and had a tremendous bath in

a large flower-pot saucer. I seized the opportunity to examine the

nest. Three little lumps of white down, that resembled white mould,

turned out to be chicks, ranging from three to six days old. The

youngest died the first week. The remaining two were successfully

reared and again the hen went to nest and raised three more. When

these were flying, the hen began to lay again, but I decided to remove

the nest-box for that year. This year the hen has raised her first nest

and is hatching her second brood at the time of writing. Of course,

individual Bourke’s differ in constitution and tastes. Our Bourke’s

would never touch oats, but were very fond of chickweed and groundsel,

and they both seemed to like the heads of daisies. Heat I have never

had in the house and, although my pond in the garden the last two



