Psittacus torquatus, Russ. Synonyms: Psittacus Alexamdri; Psittacus torquatus macrourus antiquorum;

Psittacus minor macrovius viridis; Psittacus manillensis ? Bchst.; Psittacus docilis; Palceornis torquatus, Vgrs.; etc.

German: Der Kleine Alexandersittich.

Ring-Necked or Bengal Parrakeet.

THIS pretty little bird is, like the preceding species, a native of India, but is also found in Africa; the difference between the Asiatic and African varieties being too slight to warrant their being separated into two distinct species.

The Ring-necked Parrakeet bears a general resemblance to its larger relative the Alexandrine, but the green head has a decided bluish tinge running through it; the beak is red, with a black tip, the wing spot is much smaller, and the pinky rose crescent on the back of the neck in the latter bird, dwindles down to a narrow line in the one under consideration.

There is no difference between the African and Indian Ring-necked Parrakeets, except that the former is perhaps a trifle the larger of the two, and has a black instead of a reddish beak.

In the London Zoological Society's catalogue, the African bird is called the Rose-ringed Parrakeet (Palceornis docilis), and the Indian, the Ring-necked Parrakeet (Palceornis torquatus); but, as we have already remarked, the differences are so very trifling as to be really immaterial; and to make two species of them, is, in our opinion, creating a difference for the sake of multiplying species, where too many have been already made.

A smaller variety still is found in the Island of Mauritius, and differs from its continental relative in size only; so that it seems to us unnecessary to separate it into a distinct species, as many writers, including Dr. Russ, have done. The latter writer names it Der Kleinste Alexander sittich (Psittacus eques); it received the name of Palceornis bitorquatus from Kuhl and Vigors, an appellation to which Prince L. Bonaparte added the farther specific epithet borbonica. It is seldom to be met with in Europe, as it scarcely ever falls into the hands of the dealers, the few individuals that are about having been brought over by returning colonists: it is generally confounded with the bird just described, from which, as we have said, it only differs in being a trifle smaller; but it is quite as hardy, and susceptible of education.

The Ring-necked Parrot, whether African or Indian, makes a nice pet, very tame and gentle with its friends, but given to scream horribly at sight of a stranger. It is not, usually, a great talker, though there are many exceptions to this rule: one that we have frequently seen being credited with the knowledge of over one hundred different sentences.

The female is known by the absence of the rose and black rings.

The treatment should be the same, in every respect, that has been recommended for the Alexandrine Parrakeet.

When first imported these birds are decidedly delicate, many dying before they become acclimatised; but once they have got over the effects of the voyage, and have become used to their new surroundings, they grow quite strong and hardy, even to the extent of wintering out of doors with impunity in this bleak climate of ours.

We are not aware that the Ring-necked Parrot has ever been bred in England, although it is not unusual for solitary females to deposit eggs in their cages: but we do not think any very persistent attempts have been made to perpetuate the species in confinement here.

In India, however, it is not unfrequently bred in aviaries, and from among these domesticated birds has sprung a canary-coloured "sport", that is really a very remarkable bird: though of a rich citron yellow all over the whole body, except the beak which is red, and the legs and feet which are lead-coloured, the Yellow Ring-necked is an albino, for it has a pink eye; it is not very common, and is rarely imported into this country, for it is a great favourite with the wealthy natives, and when one makes its appearance upon the scene it is at once secured for their aviaries, being held in almost as much veneration as the White Elephant in the neighbouring country of Siam.

The total length of this bird is fifteen or sixteen inches, of which the tail measures nearly ten, the two central feathers being three or four inches longer than the rest.

The Ring-necked Parrakeet, as we have said, learns to speak well, but it takes a great deal of teaching; so much so that many people tire of the task before it is well begun, and dismiss the poor bird as stupid, when they themselves are simply lazy - "too much trouble", etc.

In order that one of these birds shall become a talker, it is necessary to take it in hand when very young, and, as assiduously as possible, repeat to it the word or words it is desired to teach it: constant repetitions impress the sound upon the Parrakeet's memory, and after a while the patient tutor will be rewarded for his pains, by hearing his little pupil repeating to itself in a low, and barely audible key, the syllables that have been so often spoken in its hearing, or rather directly to it; by and bye, it gains more confidence, and pronounces the words more loudly and more distinctly; but, only when it has thoroughly mastered its lesson, should a second be attempted, and when that has been accomplished, a third, and so on.

Well taught, the Ring-necked becomes a good talker; but left to itself, like many an idle boy and girl, it learns nothing, and is content to pass through life without any accomplishments whatever.

It seems almost a libel on the sex, but the females of this species of Parrakeet are almost incapable of learning to speak; on the other hand, they have any amount of capacity for screaming and shrieking at the very top of their by no means dulcet voices.

The Ring-necked Parrakeet is a long lived bird, enduring for fifteen or twenty years in the house, and instances are on record where a much more advanced age has been obtained.

"This most delightful of all these long tails", writes Dr. Russ, concerning the subject of the present notice, "is also that which was first known in Europe; it is mentioned by Aristotle, and described by Pliny. Many specimens of these Parrots were brought to Rome from Africa under Nero: it is also the only member of the family that is common to Asia and Africa: its habitat extends from Senegambia to Malacca; and in the East Indies it is the commonest of birds.

"It nests from January to March in the hollow boughs of trees, or in crevices in houses and old Pagodas, where it lays from three to four eggs.

"The price of a pair is about twenty-four or thirty shillings, but a talking Ring-necked is worth ninety shillings and upwards. Herr Gudera in Leipsig has one that repeats a goodly catalogue of German and French expressions.

"An old pair in my bird-room lived in perfect amity with other Parrots, and small birds, until I made the acquisition of three young females, when they immediately attacked the other birds, and maliciously bit them. So it behoves one to be cautious.

"The first pair began to nest in April, and deposited three eggs in a nest-box, which, however, they did not incubate. They have, on the other hand, been successfully bred by Herr Otto Wiegand, as recorded in The Feathered World for 1873, No. 19."

The same author gives a very full description of this bird in his great work, Die fremdlandischen Stubenvogel, accompanied by a portrait (xxv, Bird 120), as well as in his latest book, Die sprechenden Papageien, to which we must refer our readers, as the accounts given are too long for transcription into these pages, and of too interesting a nature to be condensed.

From what we have written it will be gathered that the Ring-necked Parrakeet, whether hailing from India, Africa, or the Mauritius, is, on the whole, a very desirable bird, and so it really is; but, at the same time, it must be carefully borne in mind that all these Parrakeets have tempers of their own, and shew them on occasion.

If they are not spoiled, however, by being teased, they are amiable enough, but once they have been angered into screaming, or shrieking rather, there is no enduring them in the house, let them be otherwise ever so accomplished and desirable, for their incessant cries are enough to give the horrors to the unfortunate person who is doomed to listen to them, so that care must be taken not to irritate them, and irretrievably ruin their tempers by foolish and tantalising tricks, as so many people, and not always children either, are in the habit of doing.

The Hon. And Rev. F. G. Dutton's Account Of The Ring-Necked Or Bengal Parrakeet (Palaeornis Torquatus)

This bird would be the ideal of pets, if any one could find the way of successfully breaking it of screaming. One of the most lovely of Parrakeets, its powers of talking are considerable, and its devotion to those to whom it takes a fancy is unbounded.

It is hardly possible to resist buying it, when one of the numerous specimens that have been well-taught is offered for sale. But the cheap prices at which they are often offered tell a tale in themselves. I have again and again kept them: charming French specimens that did their military exercises, their drum, their "As-tu-dejeune, Cocotte?" their little song: English ones that had a perfect vocabulary of sentences, and one and all having that greatest merit of a talking bird, that they would say them when you wanted them; but one and all, they have had to go. They would not confine themselves to our speech, but would indulge in their own, and there are few noises so irritating to the ear as the incessant scream of the Bengal Parrakeet.

They are often capricious: sometimes they like or dislike a whole sex: sometimes they are guided solely by individual preferences. I had a most accomplished cock-bird once, but all his affection was reserved for ladies: a man could never trust him; he might be polite for a moment, but when he got his chance, he would give a most vicious bite. I know a hen at this moment who will let men handle her, but will bite any woman.

With regard to the sexes, as a rule the hens are impartially vicious, and they learn much less than the cocks, while they scream quite as much.

Some of the birds will learn fresh sentences after one buys them. One I bought in Paris, forgot nearly all its French after I parted with it, and became a good English talker, I was told. But, as a rule, birds which speak at command do not add to their knowledge. I shall have more to say on this subject under the head of the Double-fronted Amazon.

Bengal Parrakeets are very hardy - I do not recollect ever having had one ailing. But if I had, I should treat them with a regimen of great warmth. It is wonderful what heat all the tropical Parrots can bear, and what excellent results it has. They are very fond of washing, and should always have a good bath provided.

They are not good birds to turn loose out of doors. All the Paloeornis tribe are very powerful on the wing, and seem to have but little homing instinct. They take considerable flights, and unless one happens to see which way they have gone, they are apt to lose themselves. I have no doubt that if they were fed, they could live at liberty all the year round in our climate. One, Paloeornis schisticeps, is found in the snow limit of the hills.

What I have said about the Bengal Parrakeet may be taken as applying to the Senegal Parrakeet. This, though smaller than the Bengal, and slenderer, with a dark bill instead of a rosy one, has precisely the same merits and the same fault of noisiness. They are not so common in England as the Bengal, but in France they are much commoner. Pity that so small a bird should have so loud a scream. The Senegal has a smaller voice in speaking than the Bengal.

We cannot quite agree with our friend Mr. Dutton here: the Senegal Parrot is not the Ring-necked Parrakeet, whether African or Indian, but a perfectly distinct species, called by Dr. Buss Der Mohrenkopf-Papagei (Psittacus Senegalus): it is of much less frequent occurrence in this country than Paloeornis torquatus, nor does it belong to the Paloeornis sub-family, but is the Pionus Senegalus of Wagler, the Piocephalus Senegalensis of Swainson, and the Pionias Senegalus of Finsch.

Dr. Russ considers the Mohrenkopf one of the most delightful of cage birds, yet he relates an anecdote of one that was in his possession for some time, that does not say much for the amiability of that individual bird at all events: but we shall return to this subject at greater length on a future occasion.

The bird which Mr. Dutton calls the " Senegal" is the African variety of the Ring-necked Parrakeet.