Birds and Birding's Guide to:

Watching THE CUCKOO-LIKE BIRDS

THE PARROTS

Crimson Parakeet

Of the same size as the last, but even more brilliant, is the Crimson or Pennant's Parakeet (P. elegans) of East and South Australia, the adult male of which is largely a deep, rich crimson, set off on cheeks and shoulders with cerulean blue. It frequents grassy hills and brushes as well as open glades in the forest, and, says Mr. Campbell,”when a flock is seen passing through the forest they describe, as it were, so many streaks of the richest crimson coloring.”The nesting habits are similar to those of other species.

Introducing a group of half a dozen genera, in which the back is uniform, is the Red-capped Parakeet, or King Parrot (Porphyrocephalus spurius), of West Australia, which is the sole tenant of its genus. It is a very handsome bird about fifteen inches long, with the forehead, crown, and nape deep maroon-red, the cheeks yellowish green, the rump jonquil-yellow, and the edges of the shoulders and the bases of the primaries deep blue, while the wings are deep black and the breast and abdomen blue, with vent and under tail-coverts scarlet. This species is usually seen in small families feeding on the ground, though the nature of its food is not well understood, yet Campbell states that it loves to feed upon the kernel of the native pear. Its voice is a sharp clucking note several times repeated, and its nest is located in a hollow tree.

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