266 COLUMBA PALUMBUS. 



Birds that require a powerful flight, and find it necessary to 

 betake themselves to the open country, have their first plumage 

 nearly as strong as the second ; and this is the case with the 

 present species, as well as the Rock Dove. 



Progress toward Maturity, — At the first moult, the colours 

 are perfected, the only change that they afterwards undergo 

 being to a somewhat deeper and purer tint. 



Remarks. — According to authors, the Ringed Dove is gene- 

 rally distributed over Europe, but is more abundant in the 

 southern parts. The domestication of this species has often 

 been attempted, but almost always without success ; for al- 

 though individuals become perfectly tame in confinement, they 

 embrace the first opportunity to regain their freedom. " We 

 have been at considerable pains," says Montagu, " to endeavour 

 to domesticate this bird; and though we have tamed them 

 within doors, so as to be exceedingly troublesome, yet we never 

 could produce a breed, either by themselves, or with the tame 

 pigeon. Two were bred up together with a male pigeon, and 

 were so tame as to eat out of the hand ; but as they shewed 

 no signs of prolificacy in the spring, they were suffered to take 

 their liberty in the month of June, by opening the window of 

 the room in which they were confined, thinking the pigeon 

 might induce them to return to their usual place of abode, 

 either for food or to roost ; but they instantly took to their na- 

 tural habits, and we saw no more of them, although the pigeon 

 continued to return." 



Mr. Neville Wood however is of a contrary opinion. In a 

 paper on the habits of this bird, inserted in the third number 

 of the Naturalist, p. 130, he has the following paragraph : — 

 " The impossibility of taming this bird and of domesticating 

 it, in the manner of the Rock Pigeon, has often been mentioned, 

 but I should imagine this statement has either been copied 

 from other authorities, or the experiment has not been properly 

 tried. Two years ago I reared a male Ring Pigeon from the 

 time when it would have left the nest, always supplying it 

 with green peas, beans, &c., until it was able to feed itself. 

 When full grown, I turned it out and fed it with my other 



