96 INDIAN PIGEONS AND DOVES 



all sides, until the branches are Hterally laden with them. In Suffragam 

 I found them feeding on the wild Cinnamon fruit, and also on wild 

 nutmegs which their enormous gape enables them to swallow with ease. 

 The nutmeg is, of coiurse, as in the case of the Myna, voided after the 

 mace has been digested." 



It is credited with being a regular drinker. As already quoted, 

 Legge infers that it drinlis regularly in the morning, and Jerdon also says 

 that " like the Green Pigeons, it betakes itself to river banks to drink, 

 about 8 or 9 a.m. and again, I beHeve, in the afternoon." Blanford also 

 says that it drinks morning and afternoon, and that he has seen it drinking 

 at the latter hour. I have myself, more than once, put them up from 

 sand-banks on river -sides where they were drinking, and on one occasion 

 watched a pair for some minutes as they were drinking from a forest- 

 stream in the early morning. These two birds moved about quite freely 

 on the flat, sandy bank, walking much like the birds of the genus Columba, 

 but not so fast. Every now and then they retiurned to the water's edge, 

 and thrusting their biUs deep in, after the manner of all Doves and 

 Pigeons, took long draughts of water. 



They are occasionally caged by the natives of India, and I have seen 

 one or two birds in captivity ; but they are uninteresting pets when kept 

 in small cages, for they become very lethargic and slow in their movements, 

 and in their intense greediness make themselves in a terrible state when 

 gorging on plantains, or suttoo, a kind of porridge which forms their 

 principal article of diet when caged. Nor have they the beautiful 

 whistling-notes of the Green Pigeon, their note being a very deep guttui-al 

 "coo" of the same character as that of the Wood-Pigeon, but very deep, 

 and consisting of two notes well syllabified as " wuck-woor," the second 

 syllable the deeper and prolonged with a rolling sound. Jerdon de- 

 scribes its call as a " low, deep, plaintive moan." Tichell as "deep and ven- 

 triloquous," and another writer as not unlike the croaking of a bull-frog. 



If kept in a big aviary it might possibly form a more interesting pet 

 to keep than it does when in a small cage, for, undoubtedly, it is a very 

 handsome bird, and as it is not quarrelsome, it could be kept in the same 

 aviary with other birds. 



It is an excellent bird for the table, though it varies a good deal in 

 flavour according to what it has been feeding on. It should always be 

 skinned, not only plucked, prior to cooking, as the skin is often loaded 

 with a dense coating of yeUow fat, not always pleasant to the taste. 



