446 THE BIRDS OF HELIGOLAND 



with certainty, but Sewertzoti' docs not mention it among the birds 

 of Turkestan. 



245.— Rock Dove [Felsentaube]. 

 COLUMBA LIVIA, Brisson.^ 



Heligolandish: Witf-riigged Feldfliichter = White-bached Field Pigeon. 



Columba livia. Naumaun, vi. r 86. 



Bock Dove. Dresser, vii. ii. 



Colombe bisd. Temminck, Manuel, ii. 446, iv. 30S. 



The plumage of this Dove, the primeval parent of all the infinite 

 number of varieties of tame pigeons, is of a pure, soft blue-grey 

 colour ; the rump is snow-white, the wings are crossed by broad, 

 deep black bands, and the neck and upper breast shine with deep 

 ofreen and red reflections. All these characters combine to make 

 this bird not only the handsomest of all its resident congeners, but 

 also one of the most attractive of our whole avifauna. Unfor- 

 tunately, it is but a rare visitor to the island, only occiu-ring at 

 intervals of several years, and has been shot perhaps only once in 

 ten years. 



This species breeds in great abundance on all the rocky coasts 

 of the west of England, Ireland, and Scotland, as fixr north as the 

 Shetlands, Orkneys, and Faroes, and as far south as the Azores and 

 C!anary Islands. Large flocks are also found in the high rocky 

 mountain ranges of Spain, and on all the rocky coasts of the 

 Mediterranean and the islands of that sea. In Turkestan it is found 

 breeding at elevations of from seven to eight thousand feet. The 

 species is, however, rare in Scandinavia, which probably also 

 explains its rare appearance in Heligoland. 



o 



246. — Stock Dove [Hohltaube]. 



COLUMBA (EN AS, Linn. 



Heligolandish : Liitj li\'ldfliicliter = STOfiH Field Pigeon. 



Columbit, (T.nas. Nanmann, vi. 215. 



Stock Dove. Dresser, vii. 23. 



Colombe colomhin. Temminck, Manuel, ii. 445, iv. 30S. 



This species, also, is only met with here in solitary instances, 

 never in companies like the Ring Dove, though it occurs far more 

 frequently than the Rock Dove, for one or two of the birds may be 



' Columba livia, Gnielin. 



