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BRITISH NESTING BIRDS 



DOVE, TURTLE (Turtur communis) 



Local Names. — Common Turtle, Ring-Necked Turtle, Spotted - 

 Necked Turtle Dove, Wrckin Dove. 



Haunt. — Woods, copses, and commons. 



Nesting Period. — May to July. 



Site of Nest. — Bushes, hedgerows, and both low and tall trees. 

 Nest is usually just out of reach. 



Materials Used. — A few twigs and sticks. A very frail homestead. 



Eggs. — Two. Creamy-white; size about 1.18 by .90 inch. 



Food. — Insects, snails, leaves of plants, and many kinds of seeds. 



Voice. — A soft, agreeable, and frequently-repeated " Croo-oo-o." 



Chief Features. — The only species of Dove which is a Summer 

 visitor, arriving towards the end of April. Possesses a soft 

 flight, and displays its tail fan-like when flying, the white tips 

 of which are very prominent. It is not so gaudily attired as 

 its relatives. It is not nearly such a harmful species as the 

 Ring Dove, but, in spite of praise bestowed upon it by the 

 poets, I have known it to strike at and kill a young Pheasant. 

 Its constancy and fidelity, however, remain unchallenged. 



Plumage. — A wine-red tinge on the ash head and nape; a black 

 space on the sides of neck with tips of white; pale wine-red 

 neck and breast; ash-brown back; dusky primaries; bluish- 

 ash secondaries; wing-coverts and scapulars rust-red, with a 

 centre spot of black ; belly and under tail-coverts white; dusky 

 tail, with all but two feathers in centre tipped with white; 

 outside feathers with white edge externally ; yellowish - red 

 iris; red feet; brown bill. Length. — Eleven and a half inches. 



DUCK, EIDER (Somateria mollissima) 



Local Names. — Colk, Common Eider, Dunter Duck, Edder Duck, 



Great Black and White Duck, St. Cuthbert's Duck. 

 Haunt. — Nearly always found near the sea. 

 Nesting Period. — Mid-May to early June. 

 Site of Nest. — Crevices of rocks, or on ground among plants. 

 Materials Used. — Seaweed, dry grass, etc., profusely lined with down 



which the bird plucks from her own breast. A large nest. 

 Eggs. — Five to Seven. Pale dull green, oval in shape, and with a 



smooth surface. 

 Food. — Crustacea and shellfish. 

 Voice. — The male gives vent to a grunting note, and, during the 



breeding season, another note is uttered which resembles that 



of the Ring Dove. It is mostly a silent bird. 

 Chief Features. — The largest British nesting Duck, with the exception 



