PIGEONS. 



251 



flies with great rapidity and power, and with a whistling sound of the wings, twisting 

 frequently in its flight, and threading its way among the branches, whenever it enters 

 the woods, with unerring certainty. It possesses a graceful form and a soft voice, 

 and although no brilliant colors are seen on its plumage, its modest, quaker-like o-arb 

 is very pleasant to look upon. Two or three other species of the genus have been 

 described, some of doubtful value. 



Next to this group comes Ectopistes, with its single species, the well-known 

 E. migratoria, the wild or passenger-pigeon. At one time this bird was extremely 

 common in North 

 America, passing over 

 vast portions of the 

 country in flocks of 

 such incredible num- 

 bers that they would 

 obscure the sky, and 

 take a long time, some- 

 times days, to fly by 

 any particular place, 

 notwithstanding the 

 enormous speed with 

 which they pr.oed 



* 



their course. This ra- 

 pidity of flight has 

 been estimated to 

 reach between seven- 

 ty and a hundred miles 

 an hour, and is an es- 

 sential qualification 

 for this species, for 

 their numbers being 

 so great, they are com- 

 pelled to pursue a con- 

 stant migration, as it 

 were, in search of food, 

 and it therefore is of 

 prime necessity that 

 they should be able to 

 pass over a large ex- 

 tent of country in a 

 short period of time. 

 Their form is most admirably adapted for aerial progression, being an elongated oval 

 propelled by long, well-proportioned wings, moved by large and powerful muscles, and 

 steered by a long, graduated, fully-equipped tail. The limits of this article do not per- 

 mit any extended account of this bird, and therefore only a few words can be written of 

 its roosting-places. These are generally in forests where the trees are large, and but 

 little undergrowth occurs. These roosts have been known to extend for a distance of 

 forty miles in length and several miles in breadth. The trees in this tract would be 

 loaded down with nests, crowded closely together, so that large branches have been 



FIG. 120. Ectopistes migratorius, passenger-pigeon. 



