ROCK DOVE. 261 



the rocks and deep subterranean caverns, tlie moutlis of which 

 open to the sea, and to which they constantly repair during 

 the night. In the day they fly about in large flocks, search- 

 ing for food, and when not engaged in feeding, their flvvourite 

 resort appeared to be such portions of the high precipices as 

 were covered with soft grass. It has also been observed of 

 Shetland, that those islands which produced the most corn 

 had the greatest number of Rock Doves. Their food consists 

 principally of grain and seeds : Colonel Montagu ascertained 

 that they eat considerable numbers of the Helix virgata ; and 

 Mr. Macgillivray says they pick up several species of shell- 

 snails, especially Helix ericitorum and Bidimus acutus. 

 The Pigeon's mode of drinking is by a continued draught, 

 and not by sipping, as practised by most other birds. 



The Rock Dove produces two pairs of young in the sea- 

 son, each pair generally consisting of a male and female bird : 

 the eggs are white, of a short oval shape, rather pointed at 

 one end, measuring one inch five lines in length, by one inch 

 tAvo lines and a half in breadth. 



The extreme southern localities of this species have been 

 already alluded to. North of Shetland it is found in Den- 

 mark, Sweden, Norway, and as far as the Faroe Islands. 

 Pennant, in his Arctic Zoology, says, that this bird goes as 

 for east as Lake Baikal, and M. Temminck mentions that 

 skins received from Japan do not differ in any respect from 

 those of Europe or of Africa. 



A reference to our Domestic Pigeons, and to some of the 

 varieties, rendered permanent by restriction, will follow the 

 description of the Wild Rock Dove. 



The beak reddish orange, inclining to brown ; irides pale 

 orange ; head and neck bluish grey, the sides of the latter 

 shining with green and purple reflections ; shoulders, upper 

 part of the back, and both sets of wing-coverts, french-grey ; 

 all the greater coverts with a black bar near the end, forming 



