290 



FOREIGN BIRDS FOR CAGE AND AVIARY. 



heaid, which is of the same colour a* the rest of the 

 upper surface ; eai'-coverts and throat dull blackish ; 

 the gorget and a patcli below tie ear-coverts wbitish 

 IbufE ; lower throat pale sandy-lbrown ; tips of primaries 

 ajid lateral taiil-feathers whitish buff. Hiab., "Interior 

 of Ausitraliia, and also Ports Da;rwin and Derby, N.W. 

 Aaistnal J a, ' ' ( Salva dor i . ) 



Gould quotes the following remarks bv Ga.ptaiini 

 Sturt ("Handfoook," Vol. II., pp. 129. 130):— "This 

 beiautiiful Pigeon is an inhabitant of the int-erior. It- lays 

 its eggs in February, depositng them under any low 

 bush in the miiddle of the open plains. In the latter 

 part of March and the beginning ot April they collect 

 in large flocks, and live on the seed of the rice-grass, 

 which the natives also collect for food. During the 

 short period this hiarvest lasts the flavoTir of this Pigeon 

 is most delicious, but at other times it is indifferent. 

 It flies to water at sunset, but, like the Bronze-wing, 

 only wets the bill. It is astonishing, indeed, that so 

 small a qiuainltdty as a Ixire mouthful should be suffi- 

 cient to quen*?h its thirst in t.he burning deserts it 

 inhabits. It leift us in the beginnimg of Slay, and I 

 think migralted to the N.E.. for the further we went to 

 the westward the fe'wer did we see of it." 



Mr. A. J. Oamplbell (" Nests and Eggs of AusitraJian 

 Bcrds." p. 684) describes the eggs as follows : — " Clutch, 

 two : e lipticaJ in fo'rm ; testure of shell fine but strong ; 

 surface glossy ; colour, white, with a sMghlt creaniy 

 tone. Dimems ons in inches : (1) 1.32 x -98," (2) 1.24 x 

 .98." 



According to Mr. A. J. Noilth this species has bred 

 in caiptirity in the arviarv of the late Hon. Willliam 

 iMacleay, of BMzalbeth Bay", dnring 1887-88. ^Ir. North 

 asserts that Jiuly and August are the usual breeding 

 season of this species, but Sir. Campbell seems to think 

 that this statement laicks proof. 



The London Zoological Societv secoircd this Pigeon in 

 1865, and bred it the year following ; it aJso nested in 

 the pa,nk of Beaujardin, near Tours, where, in 1881, a 

 p«.ir brought up six yomig. It is a rare bird in the 

 mavket. 



Partridge Bronze-winged Pigeon. 

 (Geophaps scripta). 



The adult male above is pale brown, the upper 'wirng- 

 coverts with ipaler tips ; the forehead somewhait aslhy ; 

 outer iwefos of several of the grealter coverts with a patch 

 of purple shading into greenish, and obscured by darker 

 bare ; tail-fea/thers. excepting the two central ones, 

 greyish-lbrown ait the base, and broadly tapped with 

 black ; lores, black ; a broad stripe from the lower 

 mandible to beneath the eye, a second from the pos- 

 terior angle of the eye down the side of the neck, a spot 

 on the side of the neck, the chin and throat snow-white ; 

 the iriteiwals between these nuarkings jet-black, this 

 colour surrounding the eye and forming a crescent 

 across the lower part of the t.hroat ; albdomen. grev ; 

 flanks, white: feet, deeip piirplislh-crimson ; ball b'ack ; 

 naked skin ronnd eye. bluish leaden, the corners of the 

 irfis mealy wine-red ; iris black. 



The female resemibles the maJe in plumage, but is 

 slightly smaller. Had). N'oi'th-WeislteTn and Eastern 

 Ausit/ralia. from Rockingham Bay through the interior 

 to Victoria.. 



In its habits this bird is very aiberrant, behaving in 

 some respects moire nearlv like a Quiail than a Kgeon. 

 Gould says that he usually olbsei-\-cd it in snvaJl com- 

 panies cvf four to six in number, which, when 

 atpproached. ran off with great speed and oroucheid down 

 on the Ixire plain or among scanty heflbage, where it- 

 often rema.ined until almost trodden on. When finally 



flushed it flies rapidly, with much noise, either alight- 

 ing on another pant of the plain or upon the branch of 

 a tree, on which it squalts, like the Nighitjar. in th© 

 £ame line irith the limb. The eggs — two in number — 

 are deposited upon the henr-e ground. The food con- 

 sists of grass and other seeds, and at certain seasons 

 injects and berries. 



Accorddng to Dr. Riamsay, the nest coinsisits of a 

 shaiUow hole in the ground beside a tuft of grass, and 

 lined with a few blades of dry grass. The eiggs — two 

 in number — are creamy white. 



The coo, according to Dr. Buss, is either short or pro- 

 longed ; he says that its flight is wild and exceedingly 

 swift, and that at night it roost.s upon a toleralbly hagh 

 branch, but neither Mr. Seth-Smith nor Mr. Newman 

 mentions thiis haibit. The Pa.ritnidge Bronze-wings are 

 far more terrestrial than arboreal. This Pigeon was 

 first ipresented to the London Zoological Society in 1883, 

 the following year a specimen was purchased, and three 

 more were added in 1891. in which yeaj- two young were 

 bred in the Gardens.' It was present in the Amster- 

 dam Gardens in 1882, and in 1885 and 1884 Baron von 

 Cornely bivd it at his castle dn Beaujardin ; young 

 were rea.red at the MeJIbourne Gardens in 1904 ; Mr. 

 Seth^Smith possessed specimens, but failed to breed 

 from them ; they then pas.^ed into the possession of 

 Mr. T. H. Newman, who bred them three times (four 

 young birds) in 1906 ; he says that the young When 

 hatched are not more covered with down than several 

 other species of Pigeons. Incabaition lasts seventeen 

 days. A study of Mr. Newman's article (TJti' Avicul- 

 tural Mai/azinc. Second Series, Vol. VI., pp. 337-343, 

 and Vol. VII.. pp. 40-45) will be found both interesting 

 and instniotive. Mr. Seth-Smith sa\TS thiat these birds 

 are perfecitily hardy, and that they live on good termB 

 with other birds excepting their near allies, such as 

 G. smithi or LophopJiaps. 



Smith's Bronze- winged Pigeon 



[Geopjhaps smithi). 



Upper surface bixjwn tinged with olivaceous ; outer 

 webs of inner greater wing-coverts and inner secondaries 

 rich purple shot with green ; flights brown, with narrow 

 buff edges to outer webs ; lateral tail-feathers with a 

 broad subterminal black belt ; a white line from the 

 nostrils passing over the eye and la second fi-om (base of 

 jow'er mandible passing under the leye enclosiitg the 

 reddiish-crange naked orbital skin ; cheeks brownish- 

 igrey ; throat iwhite sirrrounded Iby a mari'ow grey Iband ; 

 sides of breast white ; feathers on centre of breast clear 

 grey with black edges at tips, those on lower breast 

 wtitli a nari-ow i.suibterminal dark Iband and iwhitish edge ; 

 middle of atbdomen a.nd vent fiaiwn-icoloured ; flanks and 

 under tailjooveits diank 'gi-ev edtged rwith tfa.wn or tawny ; 

 flights below grey ; bill blaokish-gi'ey ; feet bluish- 

 grey, yellowish-grey at back and on soles; irides wiith 

 an inner red ring, a central pairple one, and an outer 

 broadeir ning of pure iwihite axairrowly encinciled outside 

 by a- grey irling. Female similar to the male, Ibuit 

 smaller. Hab., "N.W. Aufta-alia, from Dert)y to tih« 

 Gulf of Carpentaria." (Salvadori.) 



Gould says of this Pigeon ("Handbook," Vol. II., 

 pp. 133, 134) : " Like the G. scripta, this biid, which 

 at Port Essington is termed the Partridge, differs con- 

 siderably from its congeners in its general habits, flight, 

 voice, mode of incubation, and the character of its 

 newly-hatched young. It is rather abundant in all parts 

 of the Peninsula, is mostly seen in small families, and 



* Mr. Seit.h^Smith sajys tJiat the egigs -were hafrcthed under 

 Barb,ar.v Dovea, but apparently not reared; yet they are entered 

 in the society's list. 



