104 BRITISH BIRDS, THEIR EGGS AND NESTS. 
like; and nothing is more common than to see the parent birds 
frequenting the garden and close vicinity of a country-house, 
aumost as tamely as if they were a pair of common or house 
Pigeons. The eggs seem to be invariably very oval in shape, and 
purely white. They are 14 inch long, by 2 inch broad. 
147. STOCK DOVE—(Columba enas). 
Stock Pigeon, Wood Pigeon, Wood Dove.—This Dove is not 
only, generally speaking, much less abundant throughout the coun- 
try than the Ring Dove, but very often, it would seem, confounded 
with it by casual observers, who only notice the several birds 
from a distance, or on the wing. They frequent the same roost- 
ing-places, and often feed in the same field, though probably on 
different species of food. I have shot birds of both species at 
the same discharge of the gun, and have noticed the different 
matters which had supplied their meals of the day,—Holly- 
berries, in the case of the Ring Dove; wild mustard-seed, in the 
other. The Stock Dove is, however, immediately and easily dis- 
tinguishable from the Ring Dove, by its lesser size, a slight diffe- 
rence in colour, and the entire absence of the “ring” of white 
feathers on the neck. Its nest is placed sometimes on pollard 
trees, sometimes in open holes or hollows in old trees; and very 
commonly, in some districts, either on the ground below thick 
furze-bushes, or in deserted rabbit-burrows, two or three feet 
distant from the entrance. The nest is very slight, consisting 
merely of a few twigs or roots. The eggs are two in numbers 
pure white, about or rather exceeding 14 inch in length, by 
12 inch in breadth. 
ROCK-DOVE—(Columba livia). 
Wild Pigeon, Rock Pigeon, Wild Dove, Doo, Rockier.—This 
Pigeon has usually, until not long since, been confused with the 
