38 



BRITISH BIRDS 



In the winter the resident population of Ringdoves is 

 augmented by numerous arrivals from the Continent, to 

 which the strangers, or as many of them as are then 

 surviving, return when the more genial weather of spring- 

 time has set in. 



It is a large bird, measuring i8 inches in length, and, 

 when in good condition weighs from i8 to 20 ounces, the 

 female being a trifle smaller and, of course, not so heavy. 

 She can only be distinguished from her mate by her more 



feminine appearance, excej)t during the breeding season* 

 when he develops two protuberances, or knobs, of a 

 reddish-yellow colour on the upper mandible, which are 

 totally lacking in the female. 



The general colour of this species is a fine slaty-blue 

 with metallic reflections on the neck and breast ; on each 

 side of the neck is a small patch of glossy white (the ring 

 to which the bird owes its name) ; the tail is long and 

 broad, and consists of twelve feathers, with a dark band 

 across the lower third. 



