154 NESTS AND EGGS OF 



Mr. Sennett states that this bird does not breed in communi- 

 ties, but in isolated pairs, and from all accounts, raises but one brood 

 in a season, unless the nest is despoiled, when the female will lay 

 another clutch, which almost invariably consists of three, rarely less. 

 Mr. Norris has a set of four eggs, and reports that Mr. Thos. H. Jack- 

 son has received several sets of the same number from southern Texas. 

 Mr. Sennett obtained fresh eggs on the Rio Grande, April loth, and on 

 the 20th sets were generally full and fresh, after which time they con- 

 tained embryos. The nests are shallow structures, often made entirely of 

 Spanish moss, and are placed on horizontal limbs, a few feet from 

 the ground. The eggs are of a buffy-white, thick-shelled and roughly 

 granulated; they are large for the bird; sizes range from 2.18 to 2.35 

 long by 1.55 to 1.60 broad. The set of four eggs in Mr. Norris' collec- 

 tion was taken June 2, 1886, in Camargo county, Mexico. They are 

 of a dull, yellowish-white, and measure 2.30x1.61, 2.30x1.61, 

 2.2i x 1.56, 2.33 x 1.57. The small ends of these specimens are quite 

 pointed. 



312. Columba fasciata SAY. [456.] 



Band-tailed Pigeon. 



Hab. Western United States, from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific coast, from Washington Terri- 

 tory and New Mexico south, through Mexico to the highlands of Guatemala. 



The Band-tailed, or White-collared Pigeon, is found from the Rocky 

 Mountains westward to the Pacific. It is common, but irregular 

 in distribution. In Washington county, Oregon, Mr. Anthony 

 records this Pigeon as a common summer resident, and that south 

 of Beaverton is a large spring, whose waters contain some mineral 

 which has a great attraction for these birds, and here they are always 

 to be found in large numbers. Mr. Scott states that this species is 

 common in the Santa Catalina mountains in Arizona, breeding in 

 July. He met with it commonly in May and June, as low down as 

 3,500 feet, feeding on wild mulberries. It was not uncommon in 

 the pine region about the middle of April.* 



This is an attractive bird, about the size and possessing many 

 habits of the domestic pigeon. It sometimes congregates together 

 in flocks, even while breeding, and nests in trees and bushes along 

 the banks of streams, or in the thick forests near water. The nest 

 is a mere platform of sticks, and the eggs are also placed on the ground 

 without any nest, which is sometimes the case with the Mourning 

 Dove (Z. macroura). 



The eggs are two in number, equal-ended, glistening-white, with 

 an average size of i-5ox 1.20. 



*Auk, Vol. Ill, p. 421. 



