unless the feet are required for climbing. One peculiarity of the feet
is that the bird can reverse one toe, so that it can have three toes
in front and one behind, like most birds, or two in front and two
behind, like Parrots and Cuckoos.
Although not so strong of flight as the Diurnal Birds of Prey (_e.g._,
Hawks), Owls have managed to spread throughout the world, so that
they are found even in New Zealand. The different kinds are not easily
separated, so most people are satisfied when they have classed a
bird as an Owl, though you will probably want to divide them into two
groups--the Owls Proper and the Barn Owls.
====
[Page 85]
ORDER XVI--STRIGIFORMES, NOCTURNAL BIRDS OF PREY, OWLS.
F. 70. BUBONIDAE (11) HAWK OWLS, 280 sp.--47(44)A., 88(74)O.,
33(17)P., 48(42)E., 34(16)Nc, 75(61)Nl.
11
44
=175 Boobook Owl= (Cuckoo), _Ninox boobook_, A.
Stat. v.c. _timber_ 16
Head, upper, wings, tail reddish-brown; under rufous blotched
white; facial disc indistinct, grayish-white edged black; f.,
larger. Insects, mice, birds.
=176 Spotted Owl=, _N. maculata_, S.Q., N.S.W., V., S.A., T.,
King Is.
Stat. r. _timber_ 13
Head, upper brown spotted white; under brown blotched tawny
and white; disc indistinct; f., slightly larger. Insects,
birds.
=177 Winking Owl= (Western), _N. connivens_, A., exc. N.W.A.
Stat. c. _brushes_, _wooded gullies_ 16
Upper dark-brown spotted white; tail dark-brown barred
grayish-white; under mottled brown, white; disc indistinct;
f., larger. Insects, birds.
=178 Powerful Owl= (Eagle), _N. strenua_, N. Ter., E.A., S.A.
Stat. r. _dense gullies_ 24
Crown, upper brown marked whitish; face, throat, chest whitish
streaked brown; rest of under whitish barred brown; f., sim.
Birds, quadrupeds.
[Page 86]
[Illustration: [179] [180] [181] [182] [183]]
F. 71. STRIGIDAE (5), BARN OWLS, 26 sp.--13(11)A., 3(1)O.,
1(0)P., 4(3)E., 1(1)Nc., 7(7)Nl.
5
26
=179 Australian Barn Owl= (Lesser Masked, Delicate, Screech),
_Strix delicatula_, N.G., A.
[~179-183 _Genus, Tyto._]
Stat. c. _timber_ 14
Upper beautiful soft light grayish-brown tinged yellow, finely
spotted blackish-brown and white; under white, few small
brownish spots; disc white edged buff; f., sim. Mice, rats.
[Page 87]
=180 Masked Owl=, _S. novae-hollandiae_, A.
[~179-183 _Genus, Tyto._]
Stat. r. _forests_, _rocky_ 14
Pale buff; head, back wings marked dark-brown, few white
spots; under paler, few brown spots; disc purplish-white,
edged with deep-brown spots; f., larger. Mice, rats.
=181 Chestnut-faced Owl=, _S. castanops_, N.S.W., V., S.A., T.
[~179-183 _Genus, Tyto._]
Stat. c. _brushes_, _swamps_; f., 17; m., 14.5
Disc deep-chestnut edged black; upper rufous-brown marked
dark-brown; few small spots on head, shoulders; under deep
sandy-brown with blackish spots; f., larger. Mice, rats.
=182 Sooty Owl=, Dusky Barn Owl, _S. tenebricosa_, N.G., E.A.
[~179-183 _Genus, Tyto._]
Stat. v.r. _dense brushes_; f., 16; m., 13.5
Disc sooty-gray deeper round eyes; upper brownish-black finely
spotted white; under brownish-black washed buff, fainter
spots; legs mottled brown, white; f., larger. Mice, rats.
=183 Grass Owl=, _S. candida_, India, Formosa, China,
Philippines to E.A.
[~179-183 _Genus, Tyto._]
Stat. v.r. _grass_ 14
Disc white or tinged pale-pink; brownish spot before eye; edge
disc dark-brown above, buff below; upper dark-brown finely
spotted white; under white tinged orange-buff with scattered
brown spots; tail whitish barred brown; legs long; f., sim.
====
While Australia possesses representatives of nearly all the important
widely-spread families of birds this favored land also contains many
birds that are unknown elsewhere. In addition, there are some groups
which are found in other continents, but which reach their highest
development here. Conspicuous amongst these are Parrots and Cockatoos.
Australians are so accustomed to see these beautiful birds on every
country road, and in cages outside their houses, that they do not
appreciate their beauty or their interest, for "familiarity breeds
contempt," even with bird life.
When one reflects that no figure of a Parrot is found in ancient
Egyptian art, and that no Parrot is mentioned in the Bible, then
one begins to understand the interest of Europeans in these "spoilt
children" of the animal world, the "monkeys of the bird world," and
"the cream of the Australian avifauna."
Their tameness, their affection, their entertaining habits, and their
remarkable powers of speech, all help to render Parrots the favorites
amongst birds. The brilliance of their plumage, their intelligence,
and their longevity excite wonder, for Parrots have been known to live
100 years in captivity. Presumably, they would live even longer in a
state of nature. Humboldt recorded, as quoted in Newton's "Dictionary
of Birds," "that in South America he met with a venerable bird, which
remained the sole possessor of a literally dead language, the
whole tribe of Indians, Atures by name, who spoke it, having become
extinct."
Australians will perhaps be surprised to learn that there are no
Parrots or Cockatoos in Europe, and none in Asia, excepting India,
none in Africa north of the Tropic of Cancer, and only two in North
America, and that one of these is rapidly becoming extinct, and
that Africa and India are poor in Parrots. Thus South America and
Australasia alone are left as the lands that contain these interesting
birds in any number. While South America contains the largest
Parrots--the Macaws--all the South American species belong to
one family. In the Australian region six families of Parrots are
represented. Four of them are confined to the region, while but one
species of the fifth family (Cockatoos) is found outside the region.
The Brush-tongued Parrots, or "Lorikeets," are a purely Australian
family. Some of these are very common at times in flowering eucalypts,
even in the public gardens and streets. The Blue Mountain Parrot, very
common at times, is a giant of the family. It has been described as
a "noble bird, gorgeously apparelled." Its vernacular name of
Blue-bellied Lorikeet has been altered to Blue Mountain Lorikeet.
We found these birds nesting in the big sugar-gums bordering Warunda
Creek, Eyre Peninsula. They keenly and noisily resented our curiosity,
and screeched much as we tried to discover them amongst the green
foliage. Though so gaudy, they were picked out with difficulty.
This bird was very troublesome in my garden at Bengworden, near
the Gippsland Lakes, where, when the apples were about the size of
marbles, they tore them to pieces to get the developing "pips." In
common with the other members of the family, they have a swift, direct
flight, and screech much when flying. The "Green Keets," generally
called "Green Leeks," which are so very numerous at times, are often
accompanied by two other Lorikeets, the Little and Purple-crowned
Lorikeets. These green birds hang, head down, among the eucalyptus
leaves, and brush up the honey from the flowers with their brush
tongue. They follow the flowering of the eucalypts from district to
district, and since the eucalypts flower at irregular intervals, these
birds are not so regular in their movements as Swifts, Snipe, Curlews,
Cuckoos, and other migratory birds. For this reason the birds may be
absent from a district for some years, and then suddenly appear again
in great numbers.
Cockatoos are almost confined to the Australian region. This includes
the islands north-west of Australia out to Wallace's line, passing
between Celebes and the Philippine Islands, Celebes and Borneo, and
between the small islands of Lombok and Bali, east of Java. These
islands, though but fifteen miles apart, "differ far more from each
other in their birds and quadrupeds than do England and Japan. The
birds of the one are extremely unlike those of the other." Another
authority says that the faunas of Bali and Lombok are more unlike
than those of South America and Africa. Bali has Woodpeckers, Barbets,
Bulbuls, and Black and White Magpie-Robins, none of which is found
in Lombok, where we find Screaming Cockatoos, Friar-birds, and other
Honey-eaters, and the strange mound-building Megapodes and numerous
other remarkable birds. This narrow strait is over 1000 fathoms in
depth, and is probably one of the most ancient and most permanent
dividing lines in the world. Instead of being united to Asia, it is
probable that Australia has been more recently joined to New Zealand,
South America, and South Africa. Only one Cockatoo transgresses
Wallace's line to the west, and that is found in the Philippine
Islands; evidently it has spread there from the adjacent part of the
Australian region.
The sombre, slow-flying Black Cockatoo is the largest of all
Cockatoos. It is seen fairly often in small companies, especially on
wattles and eucalypts, the wood of which it tears to pieces with its
powerful bill to get the insect larvae feeding there. It is a valuable
forest-saving bird.
The Glossy or Leach Black Cockatoo is named after Dr. Leach, who did a
great amount of work on Australian animals about 100 years ago. It is
a rare bird, and may readily be distinguished by its smaller size and
more glossy plumage.
The peculiar gray Gang-gang Cockatoos are common in parts of the
forest country. The male is easily recognized by his red head and
crest. I occasionally see these interesting birds in the big eucalypt
forests of Gippsland. I was surprised to discover that, in South
Gippsland, it is generally called the Galah, a name which belongs to
quite a different bird (194).
The screeching, fussy White Cockatoo, with its delicate sulphur crest,
is well known. Many country dwellers enjoy the privilege of often
seeing these snowy-white birds almost covering a dead tree. They
are favorites as pets, and live to a good old age. They render good
service at times by digging up and eating grasshoppers' eggs, though
they do damage to maize and other crops. As they post sentinels, they
are difficult birds to approach.
The Pink Cockatoo (Major Mitchell) is unfortunately becoming rare. It
was fairly common when I taught in a Mallee school, near where Hopetoun
now is. It has been described as "quite the most beautiful of all the
Cockatoos, being a harmony of delicate rose-pink and white, with a
handsome crest of acuminate feathers barred in crimson, yellow, and
white." It does not take kindly to captivity. It nested in the smaller
"spouts" of the green "box-trees" in the "box-flats" and swamps about
the Goyura School, south of Lake Corrong.
What is more glorious than a mob of Rose-breasted Cockatoos
(Galahs), 500 strong, airing their beauties and graces as they take a
constitutional before retiring for the night? Probably no other kind
of bird shows better company-flying than Galahs; now one sheet of
a delicate gray lavender, and the next instant a flash of brilliant
salmon-pink, as the whole company turns and wheels, obedient to some
command or signal unperceived by us; again, the sun lights up the
pale-pink crests and gray backs, as they turn once more and wheel,
screeching, to continue their evolutions further afield. It is a sight
that lingers in the memory. They are charming pets, and some talk
well. Their beauty adds charm to our almost perfectly level great
inland plains.
The delicately-colored and friendly Cockatoo Parrot, with its
immovable crest, takes a sub-family to itself. It migrates from the
North, and, in a dry year, may even reach the South Coast. In 1908
some of these birds reached Colac, in Southern Victoria. They are
favorite aviary birds, and thousands have been exported.
In the true Parrot family, Australia is strongly represented by many
beautiful birds. The first is the Barraband Parrakeet of Gould, and
the Green Leek of some ornithologists. As the name Green Leek is
practically in universal use for the Musk Lorikeet (Green Keet) of the
ornithologist, it seems desirable to sink an inappropriate name into
a synonym, and use the earlier name, Superb Parrot, for it is a
beautiful bird. Sad to say, it has become exceedingly rare, though Mr.
A. W. Milligan informed me, a few days ago, that he saw six fly into
some pines at Black Rock one day this month (January, 1911).
The Rock Pebble, or Smoker, of the country dweller, formally called
the Black-tailed Parrot, is a fine bird. His tail, however, is not
really black, but is strongly iridescent. He nested in numbers, at
the beginning of the nineties, in the dead box-trees in Lake Corrong.
After an early tea, we frequently went over to the lake and watched
the birds feeding their young. No longer do they inhabit that
district, which has been completely cleared and placed under
cultivation.
The big King Parrot is a "showy, noble species," and is still common
in parts, especially the moist forest districts.
The members of the next group form a sub-family--the
Broad-tails--confined to Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, and the
Pacific Islands. Judging by their names, they must be amongst the most
beautiful of birds. The best known is the common Rosella, often
quoted in European books as one of the most beautiful of birds.
Its scientific name is eximius, which means excellent. Indeed, the
scientific names of Australian parrots give a good indication of
their place amongst the glories of the bird world. The cousin of the
Rosella--the large blue-winged and blue-cheeked Crimson Parrot--is
well named elegans; a grass parrot is also elegans, then follow
splendidus, splendida, and pulchella, while that great ornithologist,
Gould, has conferred the honor of pulcherrimus on another Australian
parrot. These names, given by scientists, will show Australians in
what high esteem these birds, so common with us, are held by observers
from other lands.
The Crimson Parrot, previously mentioned, is, I think, becoming
common, for I have lately seen it flying about in towns, notably in
the Botanic Gardens, Melbourne, the Zoological Gardens, Melbourne, and
the school yard at Wangaratta.
The Yellow Parrakeet, with its blue cheeks, is a "harmony in blue and
canary yellow, and is an exceedingly lovely bird." It is unfortunately
rare.
The next bird is one of our well-known cage pets--the beautiful
Ringneck--the Mallee Parrot. It flies ahead of one along the
half-chain strip of scrub left on mallee roads, and is a feature of
interest.
The next group contains some inland parrots. The "Bulloak," or "Blue
Bonnet," is a beautiful bird, and is common on inland plains. It has
a brownish-olive back and a gray chest. The bright, blue cheeks,
forehead, and shoulder, red abdomen, and light yellow base to tail
present a striking appearance. Its vernacular name--Yellow-vented
Parrakeet--has now been altered to Blue Bonnet Parrot.
The Many-colored Parrot, with its large yellow shoulder patch, is a
glory. It is, indeed, difficult to imagine a more beautiful bird as
it flies about in the bright Mallee sunshine. The Red-backed Parrot is
the common "Grass Parrot" of country dwellers. Large flocks of these
birds are to be seen on the inland plains. The female is much plainer
than her gaudy mate. This is unusual amongst parrots; for, as the work
of sitting on the eggs is done in a hollow tree under good shelter,
there is apparently no reason why the female should be plainer than
the male, and in most parrots she is equally pretty.
The brownish female offers a strong contrast to her more brightly
coloured mate, which is immediately distinguished by the large red
patch on the back. (The Many-colored Parrot has a much smaller red
patch on the back, near the base of the tail.)
The seven small Grass-Parrots (_Neophemas_) are amongst the most
beautiful of parrots. These birds have become so rare that the South
Australian Government has wisely placed them on the totally-protected
list. Bird trappers formerly exported numbers to Europe each year.
These rare Parrots are said to be worth about L7 each as cage birds.
We found the rare Rock Parrot nesting in the edges and hollows of
a tiny travertine-limestone island (Goat Island) in an inlet at the
eastern end of the Great Australian Bight. The eggs were laid on the
bare earth, often within two or three feet of high-tide mark. The
whole island was less than an acre in extent, and at no point was ten
feet above high-tide level. Many similar islands on the Australian
coast have not yet been explored ornithologically, so we do not know
what matters of interest are awaiting us.
The next bird, the Swift-flying Lorikeet, is a honey feeder, like the
first four Parrots (Lorikeets) mentioned. It is often found with
them, and was common all the winter, and is common now in a clump
of flowering gums outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground. It has given
scientists much trouble as to its correct name and position. It can
be distinguished from the "Green Keets" by having scarlet under the
wings.
The beautiful and affectionate little Budgerigar (Warbling Grass
Parrot), or Love Bird, has many names. It is migratory, and sometimes
appears in thousands, though it may not be seen again for years. It is
a favorite cage bird, and breeds as freely as caged canaries, so it is
well-known in Europe.
The last two Parrots are ground birds, which never perch or climb.
It was feared that the Ground Parrot was extinct, but it is seen
occasionally in the National Park at Wilson's Promontory. The Night
Parrot is better called the Western Ground Parrot. It is found amongst
the Spinifex (_Triodia_) scrub of the interior.
Though Parrots are essentially "climbers," having the suitable
arrangement of two toes in front and two behind, it is interesting to
learn of these two Australian Parrots which cannot perch or climb. The
Parrot's foot is of interest, further, in so far as it is used as a
hand, and the food is held in it while being eaten. The powerful bill
not only serves to reduce its food to powder, but also assists in
climbing. It is sometimes amusing to note the "absurd caution," and
great deliberation with which a parrot climbs down in his cage to pick
up some dainty.
Possessing no less than 76 kinds of Parrots and Cockatoos, Australians
should be alive to their privileges as contrasted with the dwellers of
northern lands, where Parrots do not live. They should insist on the
proper protection of these beautiful and wonderful birds.
====
[Page 88]
[Illustration: [184] [185] [186] [187] [188]]
ORDER XVII.--PSITTACIFORMES.
F. 72. _Nestoridae_, Nestor, Kaka, Kea, 4 sp. A. (N.Z.).
F. 73. LORIIDAE (9), BRUSH-TONGUED PARROTS, LORIES, LORIKEETS,
87 sp. A.
3
16
=184* Blue Mountain Lorikeet= (-Parrot), Rainbow Lory,
Blue--bellied (Swainson) Lorikeet, _Trichoglossus
novae-hollandiae_, N.A., E.A., S.A., T.
Nom. flocks c. _eucalypts_ 14
Head, throat, abdomen blue; chest blood-red tinged yellow;
back green; bill blood-red; f., sim. Honey. Screech.
[Page 89]
3
5
=185* Musk Lorikeet=, Green Keet, Green Leek (e),
_Glossopsittacus concinnus_, E.A., S.A., T.
[~185-187 _Genus, Glossopsitta._]
Nom. v.c. _flowering eucalypts_ 8.5
Green; forehead, behind ear red; bill black tipped red; f.,
sim. Honey. Screech.
=186 Purple-crowned Lorikeet=, _G. porphyrocephalus_, N.S.W.
V., S.A., W.A.
[~185-187 _Genus, Glossopsitta._]
Nom. flocks with 185. r. _eucalypts_ 6.5
Green; forehead red, yellow; behind ear fainter red,
yellow; crown purple; behind head yellowish-green; shoulder
light-blue; under wing crimson; under greenish-gray; flanks,
under-tail golden-green; bill black; f., sim. Honey. Screech.
=187 Little Lorikeet=, Jerryang, _G. pusillus_, E.A., S.A., T.
[~185-187 _Genus, Glossopsitta._]
Nom. flocks with 185. c. _eucalypts_ 6.5
Green; face deep-red; hind-neck brown; wings black edged
green; tail feathers grass-green, inner webs red at base,
yellowish at tip; f., smaller. Honey. Screech.
F. 74. CYCLOPSITTACIDAE (2), Fig-Parrots, 23 sp. A.
F. 75. CACATUIDAE (17), COCKATOOS, 29 sp.--28(28)A., 1(1)O.
(Philippine Is.).
7
7
=188 Black Cockatoo=, Funereal Black Cockatoo,
_Calyptorhynchus funereus_, S.Q., N.S.W., V., S.A., T., King
Is.
Small flocks, r. _timber_ 26
Black; ear-patch, under tail yellow; f., sim. Wood-boring
larvae. Seeds. "Wy-la."
[Page 90]
[Illustration: [189] [190] [191] [192] [193]]
=189 Banksian Cockatoo=, Banksian Black Cockatoo, C. _banksi_,
E.A., S.A.
r. _timber_ 24
Glossy greenish-black; vermilion-red band on tail; f., yellow
side of head, neck. Caterpillars, seeds.
[Page 91]
=190 Glossy Cockatoo= (Leach Black), _C. viridis_, E.A., S.A.
Small flocks, r. _timber_ 19.5
Glossy greenish-black; deep vermilion-red on tail; f., no
vermilion on tail. Sheoak (_Casuarina_) seeds.
1
1
=191* Gang-gang Cockatoo= (Red-crowned), Red-crowned Parrot (e),
Galah (e), _Callocephalum galeatum_, S.Q., N.S.W., V., T., King Is.
[~191 _Genus, Callocephalon._
v.r. _forest_ 13.5
Head, crest fine scarlet; rest slate-gray barred
grayish-green; wings tinged green; under tinged red; f., head,
crest gray. Eucalypt seeds.
5
17
=192 White Cockatoo= (Sulphur-crested), _Cacatua galerita_,
A., T., King Is.
[~192-194 _Genus, Cacatoees._]
Nom. Flocks, v.c. _timber_, _open plains_ 20
White; crest, under wing, portion of tail sulphur-yellow; f.,
sim. Seeds, grain, native bread, bulbous roots, grasshoppers'
eggs. Screech.
=193* Pink Cockatoo= (Leadbeater), Major Mitchell, _C.
leadbeateri_, Int. A.
[~192-194 _Genus, Cacatoees._]
Nom. r. _lofty gums_ 16
"Most beautiful and elegant" cockatoo; white; forehead, neck,
under wing, middle abdomen, base of tail salmon pink becoming
deeper under wing; crest crimson, yellow, white; eyes black;
f., yellow in crest brighter; eyes reddish-brown. Plaintive
cry.
[Page 92]
[Illustration: [194] [195] [196] [197] [198] [199]]
=194* Rose-breasted Cockatoo=, Galah, Willie-willock, Willock,
_C. roseicapilla_, A., T. (acc).
[~192-194 _Genus, Cacatoees._]
Nom. large flocks, c. _plains_ 14
Upper gray; under deep rose pink; head pinky-white; "the
second most beautiful of cockatoos;" f., sim. Seeds,
salt-bush.
[Page 93]
2
2
=195 Long-billed Cockatoo=, Corella, _Licmetis nasica_, N.
Ter., N.S.W., V., S.A.
[~195 _Licmetis tenuirostris._]
Flocks r. _ground_ 17
White; under wing pale-yellow; under tail bright-yellow;
forehead, face scarlet; neck, breast tinged scarlet; naked
blue skin round eye; long bill, 1-5/8 in.; f., sim. Bulbous
roots.
1
1
=196* Cockatoo-Parrot=, Cockatiel, Quarrion, _Calopsittacus
novae-hollandiae_, A.
[~196 _Calopsitta novae-hollandiae._]
Mig. flocks, c. _plains_, _timber_ 12
Forehead, crest lemon-yellow; ear-patch rich reddish-orange in
a patch yellow above white below; upper, under gray; white on
wings, chest; f., face, crest dull olive-yellow; tail barred
brown. Seeds.
F. 76. PSITTACIDAE (47), PARROTS, Macaws, 433 sp.--144(144)A.,
49(49)O., 42(42)E., 2(1)Nc., 197(196)Nl.
2
2
=197* Superb Parrot= (Scarlet-breasted), Green Leek, Barraband
Parrakeet, _Polytelis barrabandi_, S.Q., N.S.W., V., S.A.
Stat. v.r. _timber_ 16
Green; forehead, cheeks, throat rich gamboge-yellow; crescent
of scarlet next to yellow on chest; bill yellow; sometimes
red on thigh; f., green tinged dull rose on chest; thigh red.
Seeds.
=198* Black-tailed Parrot=, Rock-Pebbler, Rock-Pebble, Smoker,
_P. melanura_, N.S.W., V., S.A., W.A. (interior).
[~198 _Polytelis anthopeplus._]
Nom. v.r. _Box flats_, _timber_ 16
Head, neck, greenish-yellow; shoulders, under yellow;
upper-back olive; wing-quills, tail iridescent black; some
pink on wing; bill scarlet; f., duller. Seeds, honey.
1
9
=199* King Parrot= (Scarlet and Green, Spud), Blood Rosella,
King Lory (e), _Aprosmictus cyanopygius_, E.A., S.A.
Stat. c. _forest_ 16
"Showy, noble species;" head, neck, under scarlet; back, wings
green; rump, base tail rich dark blue; band bright green on
wing; bill scarlet; f., head, upper green; throat, chest green
tinged red; abdomen scarlet; young male like female for two
years. Bulbous roots, seeds.
[Page 95]