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DSSS eer >? Wy: Z >>> DS 22> eZ p) > a ED 33> > .? o> eS we paz Ss DY DIL PD» ee) Zee Sy SSB > DD EY ISP PD Se a Sa SS SSS Se SD ‘ee I es ie > > = ae 2D) > DBP lp p> > BE?" o> Ieee Ss 3S aD SSS > 8) Sy 2B2E. —— = >) A HISTORY OF THE BIRDS OF EUROPE, INCLUDING ALL THE SPECIES INHABITING THE WESTERN PALMARCTIC REGION. BY H. KE. DRESSER, F.LS., F.Z.S., erc. VOLUME VII. HORN DFOyNS PUBLISHED BY THE AUTHOR, 6 TENTERDEN STREET, HANOVER SQUARE, W. 1871-1881. ALERE FLAMMAM. PRINTED BY TAYLOR AND FRANCIS, RED LION COURT, FLEET STREET. OTIDZ. CHARADRIIDA. cS NG am cee i DR SIR SOE OAL IYTES SE Se a ay SO PART ELIT Tee fal Way yy i GRALLEZA. Rtas Rca —& IW GLAREOLIDA. SCOLOPACIDA (to Gallinago) _ SOLUME il GALLINA. COLUMBA. GDICNEMIDA. PD) ——— fr Ee LZ Sema ia eee re OA Nm net PE Gas nasa) ee” NS Soom \ 158. 159. 160. 164. LETTERPRESS TO VOL. VIL Genera and Species. CoLUMBA . Sete 3 454. Columba palumbus 455. Columba livia . 456. Columba cenas . 457. Columba bollii. 458. Columba laurivora 459. Columba trocaz TURTUR. ane 460. Turtur vulgaris 461. Turtur orientalis . 462. Turtur isabellinus . 463. Turtur risorius . 464. Turtur senegalensis PTEROCLES. Bae) 465. Pterocles arenarius 466. Pterocles alchata . . SYRRHAPTES 467. Syrrhaptes paradoxus . PHASIANUS. 468. Phasianus colchicus . . CACCABIS 469. Caccabis saxatilis . 470. Caccabis chukar 471. Caccabis rufa 472. Caccabis petrosa AMMOPERDIX . hae ate 473. Ammoperdix bonhami Date of publication. 1880 1878 1879 1876 1875 1875 1875 1880 1876 1876 1877 1877 1876 1880 1874 1874 1880 1876 1880 1879 1880 1875 1875 1875 1875 1880 1880 Issued in Part Pages in article. 1 8 ro 1 ob Ww oo PPD ROH Pe PAO RHE OH OF aAaoH Final paging. 93-96 97-102 103-109 111-114 115 117-120 165. 166. 167. 168. 169. 170. Hil 176. lv Genera and Species. FRANCOLINUS . miticcyaus 474. Francolinus vulgaris . PERDIX. Sith 475. Perdix cinerea . CoTURNIX . é 476. Coturnix communis . LaGopus eet 477. Lagopus mutus. 478. Lagopus scoticus . 479. Lagopus rupestris . 480. Lagopus hemileucurus 48]. Lagopus albus . BONAsA. aa noke 482. Bonasa betulina TETRAO. 0 6 483. Tetrao tetrix : 484. Tetrao mlokosiewiczi . 485. Tetrao urogallus TETRAOGALLUS ee 486. Tetraogallus caucasicus . 487. Tetraogallus caspius . . TuRNIX. 488. Turnix sylvatica . RALLUS. 489. Rallus aquaticus . PORZANA 490. Porzana maruetta . 491. Porzana bailloni 492. Porzana parva . . CREX 493. Crex pratensis . PORPHYRIO oie 494. Porphyrio veterum 495. Porphyrio smaragnotus . 496. Porphyrio alleni Date of publication. 1880 1876 1880 1878 1880 1878 1880 1874 1873 1874 1871 1874 1880 1871 1880 1873 1876 1875 1880 1878 1878 1880 1876 1880 1878 1880 1878 1878 1878 1880 1878 1880 1876 1876 1880 Issued in Part 80 51, 52 80 67, 68 80 69, 70 80 Pages in article. 1 10 — Sr of — = 9 ee I Se oY OP eH oR Re OH © @EH Final paging. 121 125-128 129 131-140 141 145-154 155 157-164 165-174 175-178 179-182 183-190 191 193-202 203 205-217 219-221 223-233 265 267-274 275-282 283-288 289 291-296 297 299-302 303-306 307-309 177. 178. Leg). 180. 185. 186. 187. Genera and Species. GALLINULA 497. FULICA . 498. 499. Grus 500. 501. 502. Otis 503. 504. 505. 506. 507. 508. 509. 510. 511. 512. Gallinula chlor: opus . Fulica cristata . Fulica atra . Grus communis Grus virgo . Grus leucogeranus Otis tarda Otis tetrax . Otis undulata . Otis macqueeni . CEDICNEMUS (idicnemus malopaee . GLAREOLA . Glareola pr niealn Glareola melanoptera . CURSORIUS. Cursorius eallicus. . CHARADRIUS . Charadrius pluvialis : Charadrius fulvus . SQUATAROLA 513. Squatarola Helvetica P Squatarola helvetica. ZAGIALITIS . 514. 516. 516. 517. 518. fEgialitis aeofroyi ffigialitis asiatica . Aigialitis cantiana Aigialitis curonica Aigialitis hiaticula EUDROMIAS 519. Eudromias earl Appendix A . Date of publication. 1880 1879 1880 1879 1879 1880 1873 1879 1878 1880 18738 1872 1876 1876 1880 1876 1880 1874 1874 1880 1875 1880 1871 1871 1880 1871 1876 1880 1878 1878 1876 1876 1876 1880 1875 Issued in Part 80 73, 74 80 73, 74 73, 74 80 18 73, 74 69, 70 Pages in article. a eo STE wor ANH wR Final paging. 311 313-319 367 369-381 385-389 391-394 395-397 399 401-407 409 411-418 419-421 423 425-431 433 435-441 443-452 453 455-463 465-472 473 475-478 479-481 483-489 491-496 497-503 505 507-518 188. 189. 190. 191. 194. 195. 196. 197. 198. Vi Genera and Species. PLUVIANUS : 520. Pluvianus egyptius CHETTUSIA . 521. Chettusia gregaria 522. Chettusia leucura . PEO Ene 23. Hoplopterus spinosus VANELLUS . ier 524. Vanellus aeati : . STREPSILAS 525. Strepsilas intebpres 3. HaMatorus 526. Heematopus Miraleeue RECURVIROSTRA rans 527. Recurvirostra avocetta HIMANTOPUS . ; 528. Himantopus candid PHALAROPUS . 529. Phalaropus eernerede: 530. Phalaropus fulicarius SCOLOPAX . 531. Scolopax aeicala GALLINAGO 9 632. Gallinago major 533. Gallinago ccelestis 534. Gallinago gallinula . Date of publication. 1880 1878 1880 1875 1871 1880 1878 1880 1875 1880 1875 1880 1877 1880 1875 1880 1877 1880 1874 1874 1880 1877 1880 1876 1880 1877 Issued in Part 80 65, 66 80 37 2 35, 36 63, 64 Pages in article. I HM WOH OH TAH oe SH wor BH ORE oo (<1 (3%) e omor Final paging. 519 521-523 525 527-530 531-536 537 539-542 577-583 585 587-594 595 597-604 605-611 618 615-627 629 631-639 641-651 653-660 PLATES TO Plates. . Columba palumbus . . Columba livia . . Columba cenas . Columba bollii . Columba laurivora . Columba trocaz . Turtur vulgaris . Turtur orientalis . . Fig. 1, Turtur isabellinus ; Turtur risorius . . Turtur senegalensis . . Pterocles arenarius . . Pterocles alchata . . Syrrhaptes paradoxus . Phasianus colchicus . . Fig. 1, Caccabis saxatilis ; C. chukar . . Fig. 1, Caccabis rufa; fig. petrosa . Ammoperdix Bente : . Francolinus vulgaris. . Perdix cinerea ¢ ad. et juv. . Perdix cinerea 2 et pulli . Coturnix communis . . Fig. 1, Lagopus mutus ; rupestris . . Lagopus mutus . Lagopus scoticus . . Lagopus rupestris (Rock Bene gan on Plate) . Lagopus rupestris 2 et 2 al Issued in Part . 65, 66 . 67, 68 751,52 . 41, 42 . Al, 42 . 41, 42 50 . 05, 06 ha 2 . 65, 66 . Ol, 52 33 33 53 . 75, 76 fig. 2, Zs . 43, 44 . 85, 36 . 17-79 . ol, 52 . 63, 64 . 63, 64 i 63564 fig. 2, L. VOL. VII. No. 482. 483. 484, 485. 486. 487. 488. 489. 490. 491. 492. 493. 494, 495, 496. AQT. 498. 499. 500. 501. 502. 503. 504. 505. 506. 507. 508. Plates. Lagopus hemileucurus . Lagopus albus est. Fig. 1, Lagopus albus hiem. ; fg.2 2, L. mutus hiem.. Lagopus albus (feet only) . Bonasa betulina . Tetrao tetrix Tetrao mlokosiewiczi Fig. 1, Tetrao urogallus (tone dus); fig. 2, 'T. urogallus ¢ steril. Tetrao urogallus . Tetraogallus caucasicus ? et il Tetraogallus caucasicus ¢ ad. et ju. a enere Tetraogallus caspius . Turnix sylvatica . Rallus aquaticus . Porzana maruetta Porzana bailloni . Porzana parva. Crex pratensis. Porphyrio veterum Porphyrio smaragnotus . Porphyrio alleni . Gallinula chloropus . Fig. 1, Fulica cristata; fig. F. atra Grus communis Grus virgo . Grus leucogeranus Otis tarda . Issued in Part No. 509. 510. 511. 512. 513. 014. 515. 516. 517. 518. 519. or Or Or OV On bp bp Ww b bl bo He OF DS ee >) On On Plates. Otis tetrax . Otis undulata . Otis macqueeni Cidicnemus scolopax Fig. 1, Glareola pratincola ; fp 2, G. melanoptera Cursorius gallicus Fig. 1, Charadrius plains este 5 fig. 2, Squatarola helvetica est. Charadrius fulvus : Fig. 1, Squatarola helvetica niet ; figs. 2, hiem. 3, Charadrius fulyus Figs. 1, 2; Charaanis! playa fig. 3, Squatarola hel- vetica autumn. . : Fig. 1, Squatarola elven fig’ 9, Charadrius pluvialis : autumn. ; pull . . Fig. 1, Aigialitis asiatica hiem.; fig. 2, AX. geoffroyi hiem. . Aigialitis geoffroyi . AXgialitis asiatica . . Aigialitis cantiana . Adgialitis curonica . Agialitis hiaticula Issued in Part 13 54 Vili Z (op) 9° orc On S&S) ks) I Or Or eo oF bo WH WY WH (ee) CX OK ps . Strepsilas interpres . . Hematopus ostralegus . . Scolopax rusticola . Gallinago major . . Fig. 1, Gallinago ccelestis ; Plates. . Eudromias morinellus . Pluvianus egyptius . . Chettusia gregaria . Chettusia leucura . Hoplopterus spinosus ; . Vanellus vulgaris (Wendling @ cris- tatus on Plate) . . Recurvirostra avocetta . 2 . Himantopus candidus 2 et pull. . . Himantopus candidus ¢ . Phalaropus hyperboreus . Phalaropus fulicarius 5 Jain, 1, fulicarius hiem. ; hiem. . Phalaropus fig. 2, P. hyperboreus . Gallinago ceelestis, pale var. ( Gal- linago gallinaria on Plate) . fig. 2, G. ceelestis, var. sabinii . . Gallinago gallinula . Subclass SCHIZOGNATH &. Order I. COLUMB. Family COLUMBIDA. Genus COLUMBA. Columba, Linneeus, Syst. Nat. i. p. 282 (1766). Palumbus apud Kaup, Natiirl. Syst. p. 107 (1829). Palumbena apud Bonaparte, Cat. Parzud. p. 9 (1856). Trocaza apud Bonaparte, Compt. Rend. xliii. p. 837 (1856). THE Pigeons must decidedly be ranged near the Gallinaceous birds, though some authors have - placed them in quite distinct divisions and apart. Sundevall (who divides our birds into two large groups—the one, which he terms Gymnopedes, containing all those which are, when hatched, naked and helpless, and the other, called by him Dasypedes, embracing those which are covered with down on emerging from the egg and are more or less able to take care of themselves) places the Pigeons amongst the Gymnopedes, separating them from the Galline by the Accipitres. In Professor Huxley’s classification, which I have followed as nearly as possible, the Pigeons, together with their close allies the Sand-Grouse, form the first order of the Schizognathe, being followed by the Gallinez—a position which is clearly the most natural one for them. The Pigeons inhabit the Palearctic, Ethiopian, Oriental, Australian, Nearctic, and Neotropical Regions, six species being found in the Western Palearctic Region. They inhabit both open and wooded localities, and the mountains as well as the plains, according as they find an abundance of food. They have a strong, swift, and protracted flight; walk with ease, taking short steps, sometimes running quite fast. Their note is a deep coo; and both sexes utter this note. They nestle on trees or bushes, amongst the rocks, and even on the ground, and deposit two pure- white elliptical eggs. The young birds, when first hatched, are nearly naked, being covered but sparingly with thin, soft down, are quite unable to do any thing for themselves, and are fed with vegetable substances softened in the crop of the old birds, and which the parent birds introduce into the mouths of their young with their bills. The food of the Pigeons consists entirely of vegetable substances of various kinds; and they drink very regularly, usually early in the morning and late in the evening. Columba livia, the type of the genus, has the bill rather short, straight, slender, the upper mandible having at the base two soft tumid bare substances over the nostrils ; culmen depressed towards the tip, which is obtuse, but thin-edged; nostrils linear, placed in the lower anterior portion of the nasal membrane; wings long, full, the second quill longest; tail moderate, slightly rounded ; legs short, strong; tarsus anteriorly scutellate, posteriorly scurfy; toes mode- rate, scutellate ; claws short, compressed, arched, rather acute; cesophagus dilated and expanded into a large two-lobed crop, below which it narrows. 158 , ay nr 3 F tart hirer FAY 4 dis fis 456 Hanhart imp. JGKenlemans lith. RING-DOVE. COLUMBA PALUMBUS. COLUMBA PALUMBUS. (RING-DOVE.) Columba palumbus, Briss. Orn. i. p. 89 (1760). Columba palumbus, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 282 (1766). Columba palumbes, Pall. Zoogr. Rosso-As. i. p. 563 (1811). Columba torquata, Leach, Syst. Cat. M. & B. Brit. Mus. p. 26 (1816). Palumbus, Kaup (Columba palumbus, L.), Natiirl. Syst. p. 107 (1829). Columba pinetorum, C. L. Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 488 (1831). Palumbus torquatus (Leach), Bp. Cat. Parzud. p. 9 (1856). Columba trocaz, Morel. Hist. Nat. Agor. p. 84 (1860, nec Heine). Palumbus excelsus, Bp. Compt. Rend. xliii. p. 836 (1856). Colombe ranuer, French; Pombo trocaz, Portuguese; Paloma torcaz, Spanish ; Colombaccio, Italian; Tudun, Maltese; Kamoor, Moorish; Ringeltaube, Holztaube, German; Ringduif, Dutch; Ringeldue, Danish; Digva, Feroese; Ringdue, Norwegian; Ringdufva, Swedish ; Kauluskyyhky, Finnish ; Lesnoi-Golub, Russian. Figure notabiles. D’Aubenton, Pl. Enl. 316; Werner, Atlas, Pigeons, pl. 1; Kjerb. Orn. Dan. taf. 28; Fritsch, Vog. Eur. taf. 29. fig. 3; Naumann, Vog. Deutschl. taf. 149; Sundevall, Svensk. Fogl. pl. 31. fig. 2; Gould, B. of Kur. pl. 243; id. B. of G. Brit. iv. pl. 1; Schlegel, Vog. Nederl. pl. 183; Bettoni, Ucc. Lomb. pl. 18. Ad. capite et collo superiore saturaté cxruleo-cinereis, capitis lateribus purpureo et violaceo nitentibus, collo macula utrinque alba notato; corpore supra fusco-ceruleo: remigibus primariis nigricantibus, extus albo marginatis: tectricibus alarum ceruleo-cinereis, sed tectricibus primariorum majoribus et mino- ribus albis, alula spuria nigra, secundariis dorso concoloribus: caudé versus basin ceruleo-cinerea, versus apicem nigrd: collo antico et pectore vinaceis, abdomine pallidiore: supracaudalibus, subcau- dalibus, subalaribus et uropygio cinereo-ceruleis: rostro ad basin rubro, versus apicem flavo: iride flava: pedibus incarnatis. Juv. adulto similis sed coloribus sordidioribus, macula nulla in lateribus colli. Adult Male (Kent, March). Head and upper neck dark dove-blue, sides of the neck richly glossed with violet and purple, each side marked with a large white patch, which nearly meet behind the neck; back dark slaty-brownish ash; wing-coverts dull dark bluish, but a long patch on the outer part of the wing is pure white; primary quills black, externally edged with white; secondaries coloured like the back, but rather darker; wing-coyerts, along the edge of the wing, and spurious wing slaty black ; lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts rich dove-blue; base of the tail rather darker, and the terminal half of the tail black; lower throat, breast, and upper abdomen rich vinous, gradually 2 becoming paler on the abdomen, and on the lower abdomen merging into pale dove-blue; lower flanks, under wing-coverts, and under tail-coverts dove-blue; bill bright red at the base, and becoming yellow towards the tip; iris straw-yellow; legs coral-red. Total length about 165-17 inches, culmen 1:05, wing 9:4, tail 6°5, tarsus 1:2. Adult Female. Closely resembles the male, but is a trifle smaller in size, and the patch on the sides of the neck is smaller, the vinous coloration of the breast being a trifle paler. Young. Differs from the adult in being duller and paler in coloration, in lacking the white patches on the sides of the neck, and in having the bill dull red at the base, and greyish towards the tip. THE present species is generally distributed throughout Europe, except in the more boreal districts, but does not range far into Asia, being there replaced by a closely allied species, Columba casiotis. Southward it is found as far as North Africa, but does not range further south in that continent, and is not recorded from the east side of North Africa. With us in Great Britain it is common and generally distributed, having increased largely in numbers, it would seem, during the last few years. It is found with us at all seasons of the year, and in some parts of the country is so numerous in the winter and spring as to do great damage to the agriculturist. Mr. Cecil Smith writes to me, “In Somersetshire it is a resident and mischievously numerous, being greatly on the increase. ‘The capacity of the Wood-Pigeon for food seems unlimited, as I have taken from the crop of a single individual as many as seventy-seven beech-masts and one large acorn: this immense quantity of food was in the crop only; the gizzard, in this case, I did not examine. Luckily for the Guernsey farmers the Wood- Pigeon is by no means a very common bird in the island, though its numbers are occasionally increased by migratory flocks, especially in the autumn.” ‘The same increase in numbers is observable in many other parts of England, and especially on the east coast. Mr. Cordeaux writes of it (B. of Humb. Distr. p. 76):—< Is much more numerous than formerly, having greatly increased during the last ten years. Collects in immense flocks in the autumn, and in sharp weather resorts to the cabbage- and turnip-fields to feed on the leaves of these plants. In severe winters with much frost and snow, the ranks of our local birds probably receive considerable accessions, either from the north or the continent, as I have observed they are invariably, at least in this neighbourhood, much more numerous in a severe than in an open winter. “ Wood-Pigeons are remarkably partial to salt water, and will daily during the summer quarter resort to those drains in the marsh to which the tide has access, to drink the salt water.” In Scotland the present species breeds throughout the country, its numbers being largely augmented during the winter by migratory flocks, which probably, as is generally supposed by the farmers on the east coast, come from Scandinavia. When in Haddingtonshire quite lately I saw large numbers of Ring-Doves, and was told that these migratory flocks are sometimes so numerous as to cause most serious injury to the farmers. Mr. Robert Gray, writing on this subject, says (B. of W. of Scotl. p. 216), “That a large yearly accession to the winter flocks takes place through migration is, I think, evident from the fact that the eastern counties only are affected by the increase, and that, looking to the destruction of so many hundreds in one year, no such increase can reasonably be traced to the results of a single breeding-season. Many years 3 ago, indeed, I am informed by Mr. Alexander Henderson, an observant bird-student resident in East Lothian, he had repeatedly seen considerable flocks of Wood-Pigeons alighting on the coast near his house, evidently in a state of exhaustion. These birds, he remarked, were smaller and darker in plumage than those hatched in the neighbouring woods; and he was convinced at the time of their appearance that they were migrants from other countries. Very soon after this information was communicated to me, I witnessed a still more extraordinary instance of foreign invasion, on the sea-shore about three miles east of Dunbar. I had gone out about daybreak, and was astonished to see a prodigious cloud of Pigeons fully a mile seawards, steering for the nearest land. The entire body of birds alighted on the sandy beach at Catcrag Bay, which they completely covered between the rocks near the limestone quarry and the opposite point in the direction of the town. I am satisfied there must have been in the flock twenty or thirty thousand Pigeons at the lowest computation; and, from the fact of their alighting immediately on reaching land without any preliminary survey of the ground, I concluded they had come in from a long journey. ‘Their tameness on my approach confirmed this conjecture, as I was allowed to put them up within twelve or fifteen yards. ‘The cloud slowly ascended; and a line was formed, six or eight birds deep, which gradually drew off the main body, forming a singular spectacle when viewed against the morning sky, and almost realizing the descriptions of Wilson and Audubon when writing of the Passenger Pigeon of North America and its ‘ five-mile’ processions in the air.” In the same work (p. 217) Mr. Gray writes as follows:—“Throughout the western counties of Scotland the Wood-Pigeon, though very numerous and apparently on the increase, is by no means so abundant as in the eastern districts. It is plentiful in Islay, where it was introduced by the late Mr. Campbell, proprietor of the island. It is found in Mull, Sky, Inverness, Ross, and Sutherlandshire; but westward of the inner islands it ranks only as a strageler. A few are occasionally seen in spring and autumn in Benbecula and South Uist, but they do not remain. “During the autumn and winter months the Ring-Dove, as this beautiful bird is also called, feeds chiefly upon the seeds of wild mustard, chickweed, roots of ranunculus or crowfoot, ivy- berries, oak-‘ spangle,’ berries of the hawthorn and holly, and various other fruits and seeds. I remember many years ago shooting great numbers in a garden at Dunbar, where their plundering visits to the gooseberry-bushes were a source of constant annoyance. Each Pigeon must have consumed a large quantity daily, as I found the crops of those I killed quite distended with gooseberries. Beech-nuts are also a favourite food, judging from the immense quantities devoured. From newspaper paragraphs now before me, I learn that in the crop of one bird shot in East Lothian 272 beech-nuts were found; and that in another, shot by Mr. Joseph Sadler, at Alyth, in Forfarshire, there were found 1020 grains of corn! Mr. James S. Dixon, of Glasgow, who has for some years taken notes on the food of this species, informs me that he has many times been interested in watching a flock of Wood-Pigeons traversing a grass-field, and eagerly picking off the seeds of the common buttercup, which they appeared to swallow with avidity.” In the north of Scotland the Ring-Dove becomes scarcer, but it is by no means uncommon in Sutherland. Mr. J. A. Harvie-Brown says that it is “ plentiful like other sylvan species at Rosehall, between that and Bonar Bridge, and in the east generally. In 1834 Mr. Selby observed it as far north as Tongue, where it breeds in the plantations and_birch- 4 woods about the base of Ben Laoghal; but he adds, ‘a few pairs only were seen during our excursion. Now it is more plentiful at Tongue; but in the west only occasional pairs are seen at rare intervals, spying out, no doubt, the nakedness of the land. In the spring of 1869 one pair frequented a small patch of birch-wood close to Loch Assyut; and I observed them feeding in the fields around for a few days; but they soon took their departure, probably to return to the better-wooded slopes of the Kyle, at Rosehall.” In Shetland, Dr. Saxby says, “though formerly seen at long and irregular intervals, it now appears every spring and autumn, though in small numbers, more than two seldom being observed at one time in the same locality. Those which visit the islands are mostly adult birds; they are apparently fatigued and desirous of resting immediately after their arrival—but are nevertheless, in general, shy and watchful as elsewhere, only approaching the gardens at dusk for the purpose of roosting, and keeping to the most open fields during the day. ‘The only Wood-Pigeon I have seen arrived about the end of October 1864, and remained for many days. ‘The bird was remarkably tame, and seemed greatly to wish to fraternize with the House-Pigeons, which, however, as soon as it appeared among them, always flew off in great alarm, dodging it as if it were a Hawk—a very singular fact ; for they never take the slightest notice of the presence of the Rock-Dove amongst them.” In Ireland, as in England, it is very generally distributed; but it has not been met with in Iceland, and is of rare occurrence in the Feroes. Captain Feilden states that Herr Kreuser, of Eide, informed him that he saw several about Eide in the winter of 1871. Mr. H. C. Miller received one from Kalbak on the lst June 1865; and in the middle of November 1868 many were seen, and several shot, at various places in the islands. In Scandinavia the Ring-Dove is widely distributed up to about 65° N. lat. Mr. Robert Collett informs me that “it breeds in Norway commonly up to the frontiers of Nordland, but is less numerous about the coast than in the wooded portions of the interior. It is generally found in dense conifer-woods intermixed with a few deciduous trees, usually far from human habita- tions, being scarcely ever seen near houses or farm-buildings, as is so often the case in Continental Europe. It arrivesin the commencement or towards the middle of April, and leaves about the middle of October. It breeds in May, frequently making use of a deserted crow’s nest or that of a squirrel, but rarely building a new one for itself, in which case it constructs it of the finer twigs of the birch.” In Sweden, Professor Sundevall writes, it is common, and breeds through- out the country, arriving early in April, occasionally late in March, and leaving in September or October. It appears to range northwards up to about 64° or 65° N. lat. Meves met with it at Ahre, in Jemtland, and on the Angermanelf on the 20th July. Von Wright says (Finl. Fogl. p-. 305) that it is common enough in Central and Southern Finland, but he is unaware how far north it ranges. He met with it in Idensalmi; and, according to Dr. Malmgren, it occurs and breeds in Kajana. In Russia it is found as far north as the White Sea; for Meves writes that he found it tolerably common in Onega Bay and near Archangel. Mr. Sabanieff informs me that it is common in Central Russia, and is most numerous in the Smolensk Government. He found it in all wooded districts throughout the Perm Government, but especially numerous in the south. According to Mr. Taczanowski, it is common in summer in Poland, where it arrives early in April and remains until the end of October. Throughout North Germany it is generally distributed, and breeds in wooded localities not only far from houses but also close to habitations ; 5 for Mr. Schalow states (J. f. O. 1876, p. 113) that it breeds regularly in the Thiergarten of Berlin, close to the Charlottenburger Chaussee, undisturbed by the constant traffic which passes there. According to Mr. Collin, it is the commonest of all the Pigeons which breed in Denmark, and is generally distributed in suitable localities. It usually arrives in March; and during mild seasons large numbers remain over winter. In Heligoland, Mr. Cordeaux writes (Ibis, 1875, p- 184), it “is common during both periods of migration, in flights more numerous in the autumn than in the spring, from five to ten or twenty ina flock. Time of migration from the end of March to the end of May, and from the latter part of September to the end of October.” In Holland it is very common, being chiefly found during summer, arriving in April and leaving in September or October; but it not unfrequently remains there over winter. In Belgium it is common and resident; and in France it is found everywhere, in large flocks, on the double passage, but is nowhere so common, as a resident, as in the public gardens of Paris, where it is found eight months in the year in a state of semidomestication. M. Adrien Lacroix says that it occurs on passage in the French Pyrenees, nesting accidentally only in the Hautes Pyrénées and Pyrénées orientales; and in Portugal, according to Professor Barboza du Bocage, it is common. In Spain it is common in the winter; and some few breed there. Colonel Irby says that a few pairs breed in the cork-wood near Gibraltar and in other wooded districts in Southern Spain, but it is most abundant during the winter months. Von Homeyer observed it in the Balearic Isles, and says (J. f. O. 1862, p. 417) that a few pairs occur in the wooded districts of Majorca, In Savoy it is abundant on passage, more particularly in the autumn, and occurs also in summer, but very few remain over the winter; and in Italy it is chiefly to be met with on passage, though some few nest there, as also in Sicily and Sardinia. Mr. C. Bygrave Wharton found it not uncommon in Corsica during the winter, but noticed none in the spring; and Mr. C. A. Wright says (Ibis, 1864, p. 157) concerning it in Malta:—*‘ Passes in April and May, and again in September, October, and November. Never seen in great numbers. Does not breed here, doubtless owing to the want of woodlands.” In Southern Germany the Ring-Dove is a tolerably common and generally-distributed summer resident. Mr. Seidensacher informed me that it breeds throughout Styria in suitable localities; and Dr. Fritsch says that it is commoner in Bohemia than the Stock-Dove, arriving late in March, collecting in flocks in the autumn, and leaving the country in October. In the Carpathians, Count Casimir Wodzicki says, it is common as far up as the forest extends, and breeds twice in the season, some few pairs even rearing three broods in the year. Messrs. Danford and Harvie-Brown state (Ibis, 1875, p. 416) that it is common in Transylvania at some seasons, but they did not observe it when there in the summer ; and in Turkey, according to Messrs. Elwes and Buckley (Ibis, 1870, p. 200), it is tolerably numerous in most parts of the country, but is never seen in large flocks. The bird found there is, they add, rather larger and darker than our British bird. Dr. Kriiper says that it winters in large numbers in Greece and Asia Minor, but only a few pairs remain to breed in the most lonely forests in the mountains, and nests have been taken on Mount Parnassus and the Veluchi. Very large flocks are seen at the foot of the Olympus in winter. Lord Lilford, who met with it in the Ionian Islands, writes (Ibis, 1860, p. 236) as follows :—“I noticed very large flocks of Wood-Pigeons near Phanari, in the plains through which the Acheron runs. This was in March 1857. I have occasionally seen a few in different 2P 6 parts of Epirus during the winter months; but it is not abundant in that province. I never saw it in Corfu.” In Southern Russia it appears to be very common, especially on the east side of the Black Sea; and Professor von Nordmann states that in October there is one continuous stream of migration between Anapa and Trebizond, lasting for ten or fifteen days, and immense numbers are netted by the inhabitants. It is said to be common in Asia Minor in winter; but com- paratively few breed there. Mr. Danford informs me that he found it common, in large flocks, at Gozna during December, and saw it at Anascha in March and April. Dr. Kriper says that he is unaware if any breed there. Referring to the occurrence of the present species in Palestine, Dr. Tristram writes (Ibis, 1868, p. 209) as follows:—‘‘ Of the Columbide, Columba palumbus is spread in countless myriads over the wooded parts of the country in winter. Never, even in the lowlands of Scotland, have I seen such flights as cover the forests of Gilead at that season. ‘The flights of Passenger Pigeons in America alone can compare with them. The fellahin villagers of Gilead adopt a cruel yet simple device by which large numbers of Ring-Doves are taken in the season of migration. A bird is snared, its eyelids sewn up with thread, and then it is tied to a perch, and placed on a tree, where the spectacle of the captive vainly flapping its wings attracts a continuous crowd of its fellows, many of whom fall victims to the weapons of the fowlers, who are in ambush close by. It would be inexplicable how such multitudes of Pigeons can find a living in a comparatively uncultivated country, did we not know that all the Columbide feed greedily on the foliage of any species of leguminous plants, and that the clovers and Astragali are the characteristic flora of this country, coming into leaf in winter and withering in April and May, by which time all the Ring-Doves have left. Indeed I doubt whether any remain so late as May, though possibly a few linger in Carmel and the higher grounds near the coast.” There appears to be no undoubted instance of its occurrence in North-east Africa, though Von Heuglin says that he thinks he recollects seeing it at Alexandria; but it is not uncommon in North-west Africa. Loche says that it is resident in Algeria, in moderate numbers, in the forest of Boghar and other wooded districts, and is abundant on migration. Mr. Tyrwhitt Drake observed it in Morocco in March; and, according to Favier (fide Colonel Irby, Orn. Str. Gibr. p. 132), it is found near Tangier throughout the year; some are migratory, crossing to Europe in March and April. Colonel Irby himself says (0. ¢.):—“‘In some localities in Morocco the Wood-Pigeon positively swarms. In April, up a valley near the Foudak, to the south-west of that place, on the road between Tangier and Tetuan, it would have been easy to shoot a hundred in a day, they were in such numbers and so excessively tame. Two or three which we shot to eat, had their crops full of the tuberous root of some weed which had been ploughed up and was lying in quantities about the fallow fields. During the same month, about three years previously, I noticed considerable numbers about Larache; but there they were much more wild, though not so shy as in England or Andalucia.” It has also been met with in the Azores; but Mr. Godman, who says (Nat. Hist. Az. p. 31) that he received two examples from the Azores, adds that it is only found in the eastern and central groups, and is most common in St. George’s and Pico. To the eastward the Ring-Dove does not extend far into Asia, indeed not much to the east of the Ural, being replaced by Columba casiotis, which is easily distinguishable by its buff neck- if patch. Specimens from Bagdad in the British Museum are referable to the present species; but near Shiraz, in Persia, Mr. Blanford only met with Columba casiotis. In habits the Ring-Dove does not differ much from the Stock-Dove; but it is easily recog- nizable from that species by its larger size, longer tail, and more especially by the white markings on its wings. It is exceedingly shy, and well able to take care of itself; and when disturbed whilst perched on a branch it almost invariably flies out at the other side, thus placing the tree between itself and the intruder. It walks on the ground with ease, taking short dainty steps, and is there quite as cautious and wary as when perched ina tree. During the breeding-season it seems to be less gregarious than its allies, and breeds in scattered pairs; but at other seasons of the year it frequently collects in larger and smaller flocks, and seeks its food in the oak-forests, beech-woods, and on cultivated ground, frequently creating great devastation in the latter. The note of the Ring-Dove is a deep coo, which is uttered by both sexes, but less frequently by the female than by the male, and is most often heard in the pairing-season, when the male bird is paying his addresses to his mate. It seldom coos whilst seated on the ground, and still more seldom when on the wing, but usually when perched on some tree-top. The male fre- quently rises from his perch high up into the air and circles down again, with extended wings and tail, to where his mate is waiting for his caresses. The Ring-Dove lives in strict monogamy ; and great affection appears to exist between a pair when mated. ‘Two broods are usually raised in the season, and perhaps in some instances three. The first eggs are deposited about the middle of April, and the second lot in June. ‘The usual place selected for the purpose of nidification is on the edge of a wood; but the nest is often found in the middle of a dense forest, and not unfrequently in gardens surrounded by human habitations. Lither an old nest of a Jay, a Crow, or a Squirrel is made use of, or else the bird constructs one for itself; in the latter case it is, as is usual with all the Pigeons, a very poor structure, consisting merely of a platform of twigs so loose that the eggs may be seen from below. Both birds assist in bringing together the materials; but the female appears to be the sole architect. Two eggs are almost invariably deposited, the first soon after the nest is finished, and the second three days later; and incubation lasts about eighteen days. ‘The eggs are pure white in colour, thin-shelled, elongated oval, and, compared with the size of the bird, are small, being but little larger than those of the Stock-Dove. When the young are hatched they are blind and very helpless; when about nine days old they get the use of their eyes, but are carefully fed by their parents, and remain in the nest until well able to fly. The food of the present species consists of seeds of various kinds, buds, &c. It is very fond of the seeds of various conifers, of beech-nuts, grain of various kinds, rape-seed, linseed, turnip- seed, acorns, &c.; and tender fresh leaves of plants are often found in quantities in its crop. It also feeds on blueberries, gooseberries, and other fruits. Like the other Pigeons it goes regularly to drink, usually in the morning and in the evening; and there are drinking-places to which it regularly resorts. In confinement the Ring-Dove does not seem to thrive well, though when taken from the nest and brought up it becomes tolerably tame. When captured old it is difficult to keep alive, and has to be crammed for some time, until by degrees it can be got to feed itself. The specimen figured is an adult male from Kent, and is the bird above described. 2P2 10 8 In the preparation of the above article I have examined the following specimens :— E Mus. H. E. Dresser. ad, 3,6, 2. Kent, April. c¢,juv. Leadenhall Market. d, d. Pisa, Italy, March 1864 (H. Giglioli). E Mus. Howard Saunders. a,b, 3,c, 2. Granada, April and May. d, d. Valencia, Spain, November 12th. E Mus. E. Hargitt. a, 3,6, 2. Inverness, June 2nd, 1869 (H. Hargitt). Hanhart ump ROCK DOVE. COLUMBA LIVIA. COLUMBA LIVIA. (ROCK-DOVE.) Columba livia, Briss. Orn. i. p. 82 (1760). Columba saxatilis, Briss. tom. cit. p. 84 (1760). Columba enas, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 279 (1766, partim). ° *Columba livia, Gm. Syst. Nat. i. p. 769 (1788, ex Briss.). Columba saxatilis, Gmel. ut supra (1788, ex Briss.). Columba livia, Bonnat. Tab]. Encycl. et Méthod. i. p. 227 (1790). Columba amalie, C. L. Brehm, Vog. Deutsch]. p. 491 (1831). Columba intermedia, Strick]. Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist. 1844, p. 39. Columba rupestris, C. L. Brehm, Vogelfang, p. 256 (1855, nec Bp.). Columba elegans, C. L. Brehm, ut supra (1855). Columba glauconotos, C. L. Brehm, ut supra (1855). Columba unicolor, C. L. Brehm, ut supra (1855), Columba dubia, C. L. Brehm, ut supra (1855). Columba gymnocyclus, G. R. Gray, List of B. in Brit. Mus. part iv. p. 28 (1856). Columba plumipes, G. R. Gray, tom. cit. p. 29 (1856). Columba turricola, Bp. Consp. Gen. Av. ii. p. 47 (1857). Columba schimperi, Bp. ut supra (1857). ¢Columba fusca, Severtzoff, Turk. Jevotn. p. 68 (1873). Columba neglecta, Hume, Lah. to Yark. p. 272 (1873). Caluman-fiadhaich, Gaelic; Colombe biset, French; Pomba, Portuguese; Zurita, Paloma brava, Spanish; Piccione selvatico, Italian; Hamiental gebel, Maltese; Hamam el Berri, Moorish ; Feldtaube, Felsentaube, German ; Blaadiqva, Feroese ; Klippe-due, Norwegian ; Klipp-dufva, Swedish. Figure notabiles. D’Aubenton, Pl. Enl. 510; Werner, Atlas, Pigeons, pl. 4; Kjerb. Orn. Dan. 2nd Suppl. taf. 4; Naumann, Vog. Deutschl. taf. 150; Sundevall, Svensk. Fogl. pl. 31. fig. 1; Gould, B. of Eur. pl. 245; id. B. of G. Brit. iv. pl. 3; Bettoni, Ucc. Lomb. pl. 80. Ad. capite et collo saturaté schistaceo-ceruleo, héc imo viridi nitente et in parte antica lateraliterque «neo purpureo lavato: dorso et tectricibus alarum minoribus ceruleo-canis, dorso imo cum uropygio albis : supracaudalibus et cauda cxruleo-schistaceis, fasciis alarum duabus et caudze apice nigris: remigibus sordidé schistaceis, versus apicem fusco tinctis, corpore subtts saturaté czruleo-canis: subalaribus et axillaribus albis: rostro rufescenti-fusco,. membrana narium tumida albo-cinerea: iride aurantiaca : pedibus rubris. Juv. ubique sordidior, fasciis alarum minus distinctis, et collo vix viridi nitente. Ii 12 2 Adult Male (Feroes). Head and neck dark slate-blue, the neck glossed all round with green, below which, on the fore part and sides of the neck, it is richly shot with coppery purple; back and lesser wing- coverts pale dove-blue; lower back and rump white; upper tail-coverts and basal portion of the tail slate-blue, the terminal portion of the tail black; quills dull pale slate-blue tinged with brown towards the tips; rest of the wings pale dove-blue crossed by two black bands; underparts dark dove-blue with a slaty tinge; under wing-coverts and axillaries white, the edge of the wing dove-blue; bill reddish brown; iris orange; legs reddish. Total length about 11 inches, culmen 0°8, wing 8°5, tail 4-6, tarsus 1:2. Adult Female (Feroes). Resembles the male, but is rather smaller, and duller in general coloration. Young. Very much duller in general coloration, and haying the black bands on the wing less clearly defined than in the adult, and there is but little of the green gloss on the neck. THE present species, which, it is now almost universally admitted, is the stock from which all our tame varieties of the Pigeon have sprung, is tolerably widely distributed, being found, though locally, from Northern Scandinavia into Northern Africa, and to the eastward its range extends into China and Japan. In Great Britain the Rock-Dove is tolerably common in suitable localities where there are high cliffs and heavy rocks, in the crannies and caves of which it can find shelter. Mr. A. G. More, speaking of its breeding-range in Great Britain, says (Ibis, 1865, p. 141) :—‘* Commencing from the south of England, the Rock-Dove used to breed formerly at Purbeck (Rev. H. Austin); but there is no direct evidence of its having ever bred in the Isle of Wight. “Mr. E. H. Rodd includes the Rock-Dove in his list as breeding occasionally in Cornwall. The Rev. M. A. Mathews has observed it building in the cliffs about Lynton. Mr. W. D. Crotch reports it as breeding in Somersetshire. ‘The bird is said to be common in Gloucester and Monmouth. “ Sir W. Jardine gives Caldey Island as a locality; and Mr. Tracy marks the bird as breeding in Pembrokeshire. The Rev. H. Harpur Crewe has observed it breeding in Denbighshire; and there are probably several other localities in South and North Wales. “Mr. J. F. Brockholes tells me that there is a colony at Beeston Castle, Cheshire, and that he once noticed a pair frequenting the high banks of the Mersey during the breeding-season. Mr. C. 8. Gregson informs me that the Rock-Dove breeds at Whitbarrow Scar; and Mr. J. B. Hodgkinson has found its nest occasionally in Cumberland: it breeds also in the Isle of Man, as I learn from my obliging correspondent Mr. J. F. Crellin. ‘‘On the east coast of England the Rock-Dove breeds only at Flamborough; it also breeds in a few rocky valleys or inland cliffs in Derby, York, Leicester, Stafford, Shropshire, and Somerset.” To this I may add that I have certainly seen the Rock-Dove in the Isle of Wight late in March; and, referring to its supposed occurrence in Somerset, Mr. Cecil Smith writes to me that he is “‘doubtful as to its being really an inhabitant of this county; I included it in my ‘Birds of Somerset’ on the authority of the Rev. M. A. Mathew, who told me that a colony had taken up their abode near Weston-super-Mare; and since then, in February 1871, I saw some Rock-Doyes at a place called Uphill, not very far from Weston-super-Mare. I pointed these out 5) c9) to a boatman who was with me, thinking that they were probably tame Pigeons; but he told me there were no Pigeons kept at Uphill, and that they lived in the rocks. Shortly after this I had a letter from a correspondent at Cheddar suggesting that some Pigeons he saw about the Cheddar cliffs were wild Rock-Doves; but I think it extremely probable that these, at all events, were escapes. I have never met with the Rock-Dove in Guernsey or the Channel Islands. Professor Ansted, however, mentions it in his list as being found in Guernsey and Sark; but I am very doubtful about this.” As above stated, the Rock-Dove breeds in some numbers in the cliffs at Flamborough Head ; and Mr. Hancock writes (B. of North. & Durh. p. 85):—‘ This is a resident, and is undoubtedly the true Stock-Dove from which the domestic Pigeon is derived.