THE C0LU5IBINE, OR PIGEON GROUP, 145 



worthy of serious attention. Two varieties 

 of the pouter are respectively termed the 

 Parisian pouter and the uploper; but of these 

 we do not know that we have ever seen any 

 specimens. The former is beautifully mottled 

 and variegated. 



The Barb. — The name of this variety seems 

 to indicate that it was originally brought 

 from the north of Africa. It is a bird of re- 

 markable appearance ; there is a small carun- 

 culated wattle at the base of the beak, which 

 latter is short and thick, and a rather large 

 naked circle of bright red spongy skin sur- 

 rounds the eye ; a short crest of prettily 

 circled feathers generally ornaments the back 

 of the head. The plumage is of a uniform 

 black, occasionally dun. 



The Fan-tail. — Among the more curious 

 varieties of the domestic pigeon must be 

 enumerated the fan-tail or broad-tailed shaker. 

 These appellations it acquires from the pecu- 

 liarity of its tail, which is carried in a man- 

 ner very similar to that of a common hen, but 

 rather more expanded. In proportion to the 

 size of the bird, it is also more ample, being 

 composed of four and twenty feathers, and, in 

 some cases, even six and thirty, instead of the 



