182 Deane, The Passenger Pigeon in Confinement. ['tnril 



"1901. — Between April 24 and August 25, seven eggs were laid 

 and all of these hatched, but two died. During the latter part of 

 this year three grown birds died. 



" 1902. — Started the year with a flock of sixteen birds (8 cJ*, 8 9 ). 

 Six eggs were laid, one hatched May 29, the young living until 

 October 21. T\\^o old birds (9) escaped from the pen while at 

 Woods Hole, Mass., and one (9 ) was sent to the Gardens of the 

 Cincinnati Zoological Co., leaving a flock of thirteen birds (8 cJ*, 5 



?)• 



"1903. — The birds began mating in January. Two males 

 died of tuberculosis, leaving six males and five females. Only one 

 pair mated and built a nest, but the female produced no egg. 



"1904. — Some nests were again made, no eggs being deposited, 

 however. One pair laid twice but the eggs developed for only a few 

 days, then halted. Evidently this means that the stock is getting 

 weak. During the year four males and one female died, leaving a 

 flock of six (2 d^, 4 9 ). 



" 1905. — One nest built but no egg laid, the female had evidently 

 lost her power to produce even an unfertile egg. Another female, 

 by the same male, produced a good egg which hatched under a pair 

 of hybrids, but the young lived only twelve days. 



"1906. — T^'o males and two females died, reducing the flock 

 to two females. 



" 1907. — The two remaining females died of tuberculosis during 

 the winter. I have two male hybrids, between a male Passenger 

 Pigeon and the common cage Ring Dove (Turtur risorius). So 

 far as tested, these hybrids have proved unfertile." 



Of the seven birds returned to Mr. Whittaker in 1898, four males 

 are still alive, and on October 25, 1907, I visited Milwaukee for the 

 ex]iress purpose of again seeing these birds. 



For some time they have been in charge of Mr. A. E. ^Yiedring, 

 to whom I am much indebted for courtesies and information. I 

 found two of the birds in fine plumage, the other two not having 

 quite completed the moult. Mr Wiedring stated that they were 

 apparently in a healthy condition and that he fed them almost 

 entirely upon seeds and farinaceous food. In the spring he fre- 

 quently fed them on angleworms, of which they are particularly 

 fond, and in this respect difl^er entirely from the domestic pigeons. 

 The only remaining female of the flock died the previous year, 



