S. Porter—A West Indian Diary



79



The other trouble is that given the protection which the birds

now enjoy, the district in which they are found being so remote that

it is very difficult to enforce the law, and the bird being given to raiding

the native’s ripening corn, is given no quarter, and whether the bird is

protected or otherwise is of no matter to the native.


So little known is this bird in captivity on the island, that I was

told by most people that it was practically extinct and it was quite

hopeless trying to obtain it. Unless any one goes to the trouble that

I did in going into the districts where it is now found, to procure

specimens, I doubt whether any more of these interesting birds will

ever be brought to this country. A great many scientific names are very

foolish, and this bird’s is no exception, for it seems to be no more active

or agile than any other parrot, while the common nomenclature of

“ All-green Amazon ” is equally foolish, for the bird is scarlet and

blue besides green. “ Jamaican Amazon ” is also confusing for it

might apply to both birds.


The Collared Amazon (Amazona collaria). This small “ Amazon ”

Parrot, though not rare in the wild state, has always been scarce in this

country, probably because it is not brightly coloured, or a good talker,

and most people visiting Jamaica have purchased the larger South

American “ Amazons ” which were usually on sale in Kingston.


This bird is not by any means common, and those who wish to see it

in a state of freedom must travel right out into the virgin forest lands

on the high mountains where small flocks can sometimes be seen. This

Parrot is not kept nearly as often by the natives as formerly. This

is no doubt due to the Parrot ban in both America and England, for

most of the natives kept the birds in the hope that they would be

purchased by travellers and tourists. In Kingston there are now very

few of these birds in captivity. I only came across five ; three of these

I purchased, the other two being in the grounds of the Jamaica Institute.


The first thing I did in landing at Kingston was to tract down

the old “ parrot woman ” who had a shack near the docks and from

whom I had purchased Parrots on a previous visit to Jamaica. Though

I found her, her stock in trade had vanished, and in spite of my many

questions all I got from her was “ Parrots no more sah, parrots no

more sah



