I'.U UIRDS OF ILLINOIS. 



Order COLXJMB^.— The Pigeons or Doves. 



Cbab. Bu.siil purl of the bill tumid and covered with ii soft »klii. in whirli iiro Bituiiti'd 

 till- narrow, loncitudinal nostrils, ovorhuni; by a valve-liko scaln or I'Ovi'rinK; terminal 

 portion of the bill bard; the ciilmen more or less stroniily arehed. Hind toe nsiially In- 

 cumbent, and front toes generally cleft to thi- extreme base. Plumage peculiarly dense, 

 tlie feathers without aftershafts. and very easily detached from the skin. Primaries ten; 

 secondaries, eleven to Utteen; reetrices. twelve to fourteen. 



The number of fiimilies composing this order is at present some- 

 what unct rtain. Whtitever the number, however, America possesses 

 but one, the Columh'uhe, or true Pigeons, whose characters are as 



folliiws : 



Family COLUMBID^. I'ue Pigeons. 



"CuAH. The basal portion of the bill covered by a soft skin, in which are situated the 

 nostrils, overhunc by an incumbent lleshy valve, the apical portion hard aftd convex. 

 Tlie hind toe on the same level with the rest; the anterior toes without membrane at 

 the base. Tarsi more or less naked; covered laterally and behind wjth hexagonal scales. 



"The bill of the Columh'uhe is always shorter than the head, thin- 

 nest in the middle; the basal half covered by a soft skin; the apical 

 portion of both jaws hard; the upper one very convex, blunt, and 

 broad at the tip, where it is also somewhat decuiTed. There is a 

 long nasal groove, the posterior portion occupied by a cartilaginous 

 scale, covered by a soft cere-like skin. The nostrils constitute an 

 elongated slit in the lower border of the scale. The eulmen is 

 always depressed and convex. The bill is nevir notched in the true 

 Doves, though Didunculu^ shows well-delineil serrations. The tongue 

 is small, soft, and somewhat fleshy. 



