S. Porter—A West Indian Diary



97



that one or two of the larger and stronger birds which might be males

have a few bright orange feathers on the bend of the wing.


The Jamaican Conure (Eupsittula nana). —Only in certain districts

is this little Parrakeet at all plentiful, St. Ann’s district on the northern

side of the island being one of them, where dense forest covers the

precipitous mountains. From the rest of the island the birds seem

to have disappeared. I made extensive inquiries, but was unable to

locate a single one in captivity, even in the region where the bird is

still found. There is little doubt that in the course of time this little

bird will be completely exterminated, for it is persecuted by the natives

on account of its feeding upon the young corn. Flocks of these birds

can be very destructive, each bird breaking open many heads of corn

and eating only a few grains from each one.


The birds seem to nest in the large earth nests of a certain ant.

These nests are a very conspicuous feature of the countryside, and

are placed either on the trunk of a tree or on a horizontal branch.

The bird cuts into these and there makes her nest. I was told by

several natives that the birds feed their young on the larvae of the

ant. Statements by natives are often very unreliable, so I cannot

vouchsafe for the truth of it.


The Ani (Crotophaga ani). —As in most of the other West Indian

islands, this bird is very common and is found about the pasture lands,

following or perched on the backs of horses and cattle. I was told

that the use of poison dip has resulted in the death of a great many

of these birds, as they partook of the poisoned insects after the cattle

had been dipped.


It is a most amusing bird, holding impromptu parties and often

having games at hide-and-seek in the dense bushes. The greatly

accentuated upper mandible is used for ploughing up earth and manure

in search for insects.


The Cayman Island Paerot ( Amazona caymanensis). —In the old

parson’s garden, where I secured many Jamaican birds, was a Parrot

cage made out of a petrol tin and in it was a specimen of this very

rare Parrot. I was told that the bird had been taken in lieu of a debt

of £1, which a dusky inhabitant of Kingston owed to the parson, and

that there was little likelihood of the bird’s being redeemed.



