246 



FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIAHY. 



"Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds," Vol. 11., p. .570, as 

 follows: — "I found se\-er^l nests of this bird, which 

 breeds in the Thoungj-een foretsts, throxighout the end 

 of February and: the wholle of March. My first four 

 nests were all found dn one day, and all were littde plat- 

 forms of straw on horizontaiUy-gixjwing bamboos, con- 

 taining each a couple of unfledged young. This was on 

 the 3rd March. Again on the 22nd March I ,got a nest 

 similarly placed, with two eggs so liard-eeit that I failed 

 to Mave them. 



" The only other egg I got was on the 28th March, 

 near Yok village, in tire Meplay district. It was placed 

 in the usual flimsy nest in the fork of a small tree abcut 

 10 feet aibove the ground, and was pure white in colour 

 and perfectly freslh. I procm-ed the female to make 

 certain." According to Hume this egg measures " 1-13 

 by 0.89." 



Russ states that in 1894 G. Boez, of Cologne, imported 

 this species for the first time, and forwai'ded it to him 

 for identification. 



Double-banded Fruit-Pigeon [O-'inofreinn biciiicla). 



" Male, above green, brighter ard more yellow on tlie 

 forehead, with the usual j-ellow wing band ; 

 occipital region and nape ash grey ; tail gi'ey, with a 

 blackish medial band on all but its middle feathers ; 

 beneath green, yellowish on tho throat, and with a 

 large butf-orange patch on the breast, surmounted by 

 a narrow lilac ba.id somewhat broader on the sides ; 

 vent pale yeiUow ; undei- tail-covei-ts cinnajnon coloured, 

 and the low-er surface of the tail blackish, tipped with 

 greyish white." 



" The female differs in wanting the blue and orange 

 breast, in the whole lower snrfaoe being brighter gi-een, 

 and in the lower tail-coverts being mingled reddish 

 ashy and bufEy w^hite ; bill gi-eenish glaucous ; legs 

 pinkish-red; irides red, suaroimded by a blue circle." 

 (Jerdon.) Hab., "Sub- Himalayan i-egion, Eiistern 

 Central Provinces of India and Burmese coimtries. as 

 far east as Cochin-China and Hainan, and also the Malay 

 Peninsula, with the island of Salanga and Ceylon." 

 (Salvador!.) 



In India this bird ih generally seen in flocks of fifty, 

 sixty, or more indivnd'uals. It flies very rapidly; its 

 note is very melodious. Tlie j-oung are often brought 

 into the Calcutta market abouit June. 



Ceylonese birds are slightly smaller than those of 

 India. They frequent low jungle, the outskirts of the 

 forest, detached rovre of trees in the open, or almost 

 anywhere where their favourite food may be found. 

 The Ceylon birds, excepting when feeding, are seen 

 mostly in small companies. The favourite food of tlie 

 species consists of berries of the bo. banyan, palu, and 

 poppalille tr»es; its times for drinking are at seven in 

 the morning and four in the afternoon. 



Nidification commeu'^s in May or June, but sometimes 

 continues until August ; the nest is formed of twigs, 

 and lined with roots ; it is placed either in a fork or 

 near the end of a branch, and contains two glossy white 

 eggs- 



A femala of this species was deposited at the London 

 Zoological Gardens in 1864, and the same year a second 

 example was presented ; in 1895 Mr. Frank Finn also 

 gave a specimen to the Society. 



Paerot Fruit-Pigeon (Osmotreron rern(ms). 



Green ; neck all it>und vinaceous purple ; mantle, back, 



lesser and median upper wing-coverts dull grass-green ; 



upper tail-coverts with a rufescent tinge; great-er coverts 



and flights black, the former and the tertiaries with 



pale yellow borders; tail dark tJate-grey with a broad 

 sub-terminal black belt, ill-defined on the central 

 feathers : head, chin, and throat gi-ey ; the foreheads- 

 sides of head and throat faintly tinged with greenish ;. 

 a deep oiunge patch on ttie breast ; abdomen yelJowisli- 

 green ; sides and under surface of wing pale slate-grey ; 

 flanks and vent jjale yellow, varied with gi'ey; tibial' 

 plumes pale yellow; und>r tai'l-co,'erts chestnut; tail 

 below black, narrowly tipped with grej- ; bill pale 

 leaden gi'ey, cere dirty yd'low ; feet cariiation-ijink or 

 pale liike-red ; irides with an outer ring of rose-pink, a 

 central ring of Prussirai blue, and an inner ring of 

 ultramarine. Femile with the head, neck, and breast, 

 green, forehead, sides of head, throat and breast tinged, 

 with dull yellowish ; under tail-coverts buffish-white,. 

 more or less suffused with pale dull cinnamon, the latter- 

 often mottled with dark gi'ey or greenish-grey ; tlie grey 

 on the he.id, the vinous pui-ple on the neck, and the- 

 orange on the breast are ail wanting. Hab., " Siam and 

 Cochin-China, South of Tenasserim, Malay Peninsula^ 

 Sum.itra, Nias. Bangka, Billliton, Java, Smnbawa, 

 Borneo, the Philippines, 8\X\\i Isliuids, and Celebes."" 

 (Salvadori.) 



The following notes on the nidification of this species- 

 occur in Hume's " Nests and Eggs of Indian Birds," 

 Second Edition, Vol. II., p. 375 : — "Mr. Davison, writing 

 from Southern Tenasserim, says : — ' On the 12th of 

 January (1880) I found a nest of this Pigeon in a small,, 

 very dense thorny bush. The nest wus of the usual 

 pigeon and dove type, consisting mercily of a few dvy 

 twigs. It was phvced about 5 feet from the ground.' " 



"These eggs measure 1.15 in ilength by 0.81 and 0.82: 

 respectively in breadth. 



"Two other eggs found at Kussooni, in the Malay 

 Peninsula, on the 7th July measure 1.11 and 1.05 in- 

 length, by 0.86 and 0.85 respectively in breadth. 



" The eggs are ovals, varj-ing from moderately broad 

 to considerably elongated ones, always apparently 

 obtuse at one end, often at both. They are pure white 

 and :have little gloss." 



Euss observes that Keilham observed them very 

 numerously in Malacca, but especially on the well- 

 wooded islands of the peninsula. Every evening before 

 isundown they flew, ailways in the same direction, in- 

 u.bout five or ten individuals, occasionally in great flocks,, 

 in order to spend tlie night in a f.ivourite group of trees. 

 If. however, they were much shot at, after a few even- 

 ings they altered their route. Their flight is ewift. 

 The is,aim3 gentleman found them breeding in Perak. 

 among bushes in mai-shy valleys. They construct a. 

 small fl.it nest loosely formed of di-y twigs at about 

 2 to 3 feet from the gi-ound. The olutehes consisted of 

 two eggs of a delicate cinnamon-red cclour, white when 

 blown. 



According to Blaauw, this species is not only spiteful 

 towards its own kind, but even will not permit its wife^ 

 to approach it ; the male of a true pair injured its 

 female so severely that it was impossible to keep them; 

 together in a large flight. He tried various experi- 

 ments, but could not get two to agree, and consequently- 

 failed to breed with them. He says that the voice is- 

 the most noticeable thing about this Pigeon. It com- 

 mences with a sharp, long-drawn Jcrcih kriih, frequently 

 repeated, then follows a kind of barking and mewing, 

 and Iniih kriih terminates the exercise. At the time the- 

 tail is moved up and down, the bill is widely opened, 

 and the head jerked forwards and back%vards. 



A pair of this species reached the London Zoological 

 Gardens in 1876, the Amsterdam Gardens acquired tho 

 species in 1882, G. Reisz exhibited a pair at the 



