446 BULLETIN" 162, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



fronds, in mimosa thickets, and even in hanging fern baskets around the 

 corridor of an occupied ranch house. Some attempt at concealment was 

 usually noticeable, but this was frequently offset by the unsecretive manner 

 in which the parents left or approached the nest. Two eggs were the invariable 

 rule. 



According to Bendire (1892), who quotes Herbert Brown, "the 

 nests are as a rule much better constructed than those of the Mexican 

 ground dove. The cavity is about half an inch deep, and the mate- 

 rials used, fine dead twigs, are much more compactly put together 

 than in the nests of the latter." Simmons (1925), describes the nest 

 construction as follows: 



Small, rather compact, firmly matted, almost flat platform or shallow saucer 

 of weed stems, tiny twigs, dried grass, rootlets, a few straws, grass seed 

 stems, bits of Indian tobacco weed, and sometimes bits of Bermuda grass, 

 Spanish and bull moss, mesquite leaves, and a few feathers from the birds; 

 occasionally nests contain string, horse-hair, or strips of cedar bark. Com- 

 monly unlined ; rarely lined with grass stems, Spanish moss or a few small 

 Inca dove feathers. 



Simmons has frequently found Inca doves using the nests of their 

 own species, of the western mourning dove, and of the western 

 mockingbird, after being slightly repaired and relined. Gilman 

 (1911) found two nests each of which was built on top of an old 

 nest of a cactus wren. 



The dimensions of the nests, according to Simmons (1925), vary 

 from 1.8 to 3.4 by 3.6 inches, with a height of 1.15 inches and an 

 inside depth of 0.5 inch. He speaks of one nest " about the size 

 of a silver dollar." Bendire (1892) describes a nest he found in a 

 thick mesquite bush as " a slight platform of twigs and grasses about 

 5 inches in diameter." 



Eggs. — [Author's note: The Inca dove lays almost invariably 

 two eggs. These are elliptical oval, smooth with very little gloss, 

 and pure white. The measurements of 34 eggs average 22.3 by 16.8 

 millimeters; the eggs showing the four extremes measure 24.3 by 

 16.8, 22.9 by 18, 20 by 16, and 21.8 by 15.5 millimeters.] 



Young. — The duration of incubation is not known. It is prob- 

 ably not far from two weeks, the same as the incubation period of 

 the Mexican ground dove. Two broods are generally raised in a 

 season, sometimes three, and occasionally four. E. W. Quillin and 

 R. Holleman (1918) record a case of a pair rearing four broods in 

 one season in the same yard. Gilman (1911) says: "The past sea- 

 son I noted four cases where two broods were raised in the same 

 nest, and two cases where a last year's nest was relined and used." 

 F. C. Willard observed one pair that laid five sets of eggs; he col- 

 lected three sets and allowed the pair to raise two broods. Others 

 ma} T have been raised later, as he was away after June 1. 



