78 BRITISH BIRDS' NESTS. 



Chin bluish-grey ; neck and breast glossy purple 

 and green ; belly and under-parts light ash-grey. 

 Legs and toes red ; claws brown. 



The female is somewhat duller in plumage and 

 smaller in size. 



Situation and Locality. In fir, yew, whitethorn, 

 and various other kinds of trees. I have met with 

 it on the crown of a pollard, and frequently on the 

 ivy-clad trunk of a tree, growing almost at right 



RING DOVE. 



angles from high rocks and precipices. I have 

 also met with it upon several occasions in an 

 isolated thorn bush growing in the middle of a large 

 field. The nest is situated at a height of from five 

 to seventy or eighty feet, and is found nearly all 

 over the United Kingdom where suitable woodland 

 is to be met with. 



Materials. Dead twigs and sticks woven into 

 a loose platform. The nest is often such a poor, 

 flimsy affair that the eggs may be seen through it 

 from beneath, and it is frequently blown down by 

 gales of wind. On the other hand, I have on one 

 or two occasions met with nests of a substantial 



