72 Birds of Gamhia. 



white, the area of white increasing fi'oni within outwards. Sides 

 of face and neck pale grey washed with purplish pink, chin almost 

 white; rest of under surface slate-gi'ey washed with pink on chest 

 and sides and becoming bluer on the belly; under surface of wings 

 pale grey. Iris hazel; eyelids and skin in front of eye dull crimson.. 

 Bill dark grey. Legs purplish red. Length 13 inches. 



In young birds the upper parts are washed with .brown 

 and the feathers generally have broad pale edges. 



From about April onwards a great many of the lUack Pigeons 

 one gets differ considerably from the above description of a typical 

 exami^le. These look distinctly palei-, when seen on the wing 

 than the ordinary bird, which the epithet " black " fits well. Their 

 upper parts are much paler, almost a French grey, and their crowns 

 arc a )>luer and brighter grey. The eyelids too arc fuller and bright, 

 not a dull crimson in colour. These, I suppose, are the oldest 

 birds, as one frequently gets a biixl in plumage intermediate between 

 the light and dark phases. 



T. vinaceus. RINGNECK TURTLE-DOVE. 



Range. "West Africa, Senegambia to I-oango ; Xortli-east 

 Africa (H.L.) 



These are by far the commonest Doves in the Gambia and are 

 found everywhere in large numbers, — on the cultivation round 'the 

 towns and on the rice-fields often in flocks of hundreds, and in smaller 

 parties in every clearing throughout the bush. In appearance 

 they resemble a very dark variety of the common cage-dove; they 

 have the same black neck -ring and arc a1)out the same size as that 

 bird, and only differ in colour, which is vinous -brown, ])aler below, 

 instead of the pale chocolate fawn of the cage variety. 



Their Mandingo name is " Jettero " or " Jettero Purali," 

 (" Purah " being the general Mandingo name for any Dove, as 

 " Mpetah " is in Joloff), the name being derived from its note, wliich 

 is trisyllabic, and supiaosed to resemble the word " -lettero." In 

 some places the boys say the bird is always calling tiie doctor, 

 " Doctor-oh, Doctor-oh." 



T. senegalensis. SENEGAL TURTLE-DOVE. 



Ikinge. Africa generally, to Palestine. Socotra. (H.L.) 



This species, though not quite so common as the preceding, 

 is however very plentiful in the Gambia, where it is essentially a 

 village bird and always tame and trustful. They frequent the com- 

 pounds and clearings in the immediate vicinity of the villages 

 feeding mainly on what they pick up in the yards, I'ound the corn 

 •ea .ing p a e . an i refuse heaps, getting their water from the wells 

 .Aid Wat a--pots and ne .ting u.ua ly in the thatch of huts and "kwiangs" 

 (grass-roofed slieiters from tlie sun) or less commonly in shallow 

 depressions in the forks of large trees in or close to a village. 

 They have two distinct notes, one a coo, the other a sort of chuckle. 

 Their Mandingo name is " Dumbokango -purah." 



