314 PIGEONS. 



THE PIGEONS. COLUMBID/E. 



General Characteristics.— Bill short, straight, and compressed, with the apical 

 half of the mandibles more or less vaulted and strong, and the base more or less 

 weak, and covered by a soft fleshy membrane, in which are placed the nostrils ; 

 the wings moderate ; the tarsi more or less long and robust ; the toes lengthened, 

 divided, and padded beneatli. 



The place which the pigeons ought to occupy in the zoological 

 system has been a very fertile subject of dispute. Linnaeus 

 classed them with the Passcres ; Buffon, Pennant, and Latham 

 arrange them as an Order by themselves ; while Cuvier and others 

 place them in the category of Gallinaceous birds. The settlement 

 of this question is indeed a matter of considerable difficulty, as 

 the habits of the entire race are in many respects very peculiar. 

 Like the Passerine birds, they associate in pairs during the nup- 

 tial season, work together in the construction of their nest, and 

 mutually assist in the incubation of their eggs and the care of 

 their progeny ; which latter, blind and helpless when they are 

 first hatched, are fed in the nest that forins their cradle, and 

 which they never quit until fully fledged ; indeed, for some time 

 afterwards they are unable to supply their own wants, and de- 

 pend entirely upon the assistance of their parents. The features 

 in which they differ from the Passerine race are, however, equally 

 well marked : these consist in their manner of drinking and of 

 administering food to their young family, in the singularity of 

 their caresses, in the nature of their plumage, and in their vocal 

 capabilities. They neither sing nor utter any cry; their only 

 voice, in the adult state, consists of a full, rolling sound, generally 

 designated by the term "cooing." Other dissimilarities separate 

 them from the Gallinaceous races, with which they have little in 

 common, either in their instincts, their manner of life, or their 

 mode of pairing. The Gallinai, as the reader will have noticed, 

 are almost all of them polygamists, and the females by laying 

 numerous eggs produce a covey at a single brood. Moreover, in 

 temperate climates this happens but once in the year. The 

 Pigeons, on the contrary, are all of them strictly monogamous, 

 and the female lays but two eggs for each sitting, although she 

 has several broods. In the Gallinaceous tribes the male renders 

 no assistance to the female cither in the construction of the nest 

 or in the care of their progeny. The chickens are born with their 



