P. erithacus, Lin. &c. ?sh-coloured, Hoary, or Com mon Grey Parrot. Grey, with naked white orbits and bright red tail. General size that of a small pigeon, and length about twelve inches. This well-known species is remarkable for its docility, the distinctness of its articu lation, and its unrestrained loquacity, readily imitating every sound within its hearing, especially during the three first years of its life; for, after that period, it learns les sons with much more difficulty. It is generally brought from Congo and Angola, but is common also in other re gions of Africa.
Buffon informs us, that the grey parrot has been known to breed in France. A gentleman of Marmande, in that country, had, it seems, a pair, which, for five or six years together, produced young ones, that were successfully reared. They made their nest in spring in a cask, filled with saw-duct ; and the number of eggs was four, but only three productive. According to Labat, a similar instance once occurred at Paris.
Like many others of its tribe, the grey parrot often lives to a great age; and we are told of individuals attaining to fifty, sixty, or even one hundred years. According to Le vaillant, one which lived in the family of Mr. Aleninek Huyser, at Amsterdam, for thirty-two years, had previ ously passed forty-one with that gentleman's uncle, who bequeathed it to his nephew ; and there can be little doubt, that it must have been at least two or three years old at the time of its arrival in Europe. When Levail lant saw it, the bird was in a state of complete decrepi tude, and, having lost its sight and memory, had lapsed into a sort of lethargic condition, and was fed at intervals with biscuit dipped in Madeira. In the days of its vigour it used to speak with great distinctness, repeat many en tire sentences, fetch its master's slippers, call the servant, ke. At the age of sixty its memory began to fail, and, instead of acquiring any new phrases, it began very per ceptibly to lose those which it had learned, and to inter mix, in a discordant manner, the words of its former language. It moulted regularly once a-year, till the age of sixty-five, when the red feathers of the tail were sup plied by yellow ones, after which no other change of plumage took place.
P. Amazonius, Shaw, P. xstivus, Lin. Amazon Par
rot, Common Green Parrot of Willoughby, &c. Green, with the edges of the shoulders red ; a red patch on the wings ; crown yellow ; and frontal bar blue. The varieties are very numerous, and have given rise to a voluminous catalogue of names. These birds are natives of South America, especially of that extensive territory which is watered by the river Amazon. In Surinam, they occa sion much injury in the plantations. They build in the midst of thick forests, the female laying four white eggs in the hollow of a tree. The young are at first quite naked, and then covered with a whitish-grey down, which is gradually succeeded by the plumage. On issuing front the nest, the male and female resemble each other.
The wonderful parrot which held a conversation with Prince Alaurice, as commemorated by Locke and Sir William Temple, appears to have belonged to one of the varieties of the present species, as also that which Col. O'Kelly bought at Bristol for a hundred guineas. This last not only repeated a great number of sentences, but would answer questions, and whistle a great variety of tunes. It also beat time with all the appearance of science, and if by chance it mistook a note, it would revert to the bar where the slip was made, correct itself, and, still beating regular time, go through the whole with wonderful exactness.
P. pullarius, Lin. &c. Guinea Parrot, Red-headed Guinea Parrakeet, Ethiopian Parrot, &c. Green, with red face, blue rump, and orange-red tail, crossed by a black bar. A highly beautiful species, about five inches and a half in length, and a native of Guinea, where it is of common occurrence. It is also found in Ethiopia, Java, and the East Indies. In those countries it preys on the corn and fruits, as the sparrow does in Europe. The trading vessels seldom fail to bring away considerable quantities of them in cages ; but they are so delicate, that most of them die in their passage to our colder climates. It has also been observed, that the firing of a vessel's great guns is fatal to many of them, which drop down dead from fear. Although very imitative of the manners of other birds, it is difficult to teach them to articulate words. They are ex tremley kind and affectionate to one another.