A Man and his Wife had the good fortune to possess a Goose which laid a Golden Egg every day. Lucky though they were, they soon began to think that they were not getting rich fast enough, and, imagining the bird must be made of gold inside, they decided to kill it in order to secure the whole store of precious metal at once. But when they cut it open they found it was just like any other goose. Thus, they neither got rich all at once, as they had hoped, nor enjoyed any longer the daily addition to their wealth. Those who want too much lose all.
The Mascarene parrot was 35 cm (14 in) in length with a large red bill and long, rounded tail feathers. Its legs were red, and it had naked red skin around the eyes and nostrils. It had a black facial mask and partially white tail feathers, but the colouration of the body, wings and head is unclear. Descriptions from life indicate the body and head were ash grey, and the white part of the tail had two dark central feathers. In contrast, descriptions based on stuffed specimens state that the body was brown and the head bluish but do not mention the dark central tail feathers. This may be due to the specimens having changed colour as a result of aging and exposure to light, as well as other forms of damage. Very little is known about the bird in life. The Mascarene parrot was first mentioned in 1674, and live specimens were later brought to Europe, where they lived in captivity . The species was scientifically described in 1771. Only two stuffed specimens exist today, in Paris and Vienn...
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