98 COMMON BIRDS OF AN INDIAN GARDEN 



pales before that of the beautiful green and bronze- 

 ground-doves. The latter are really quite fiendish 

 in their ferocity ; and occasionally, not content 

 with plucking out all the feathers from the necks 

 of their enemies, actually lay bare the bones of the 

 spinal column below. Fruit-pigeons appear to be 

 somewhat better tempered, but this is probably to 

 be ascribed to their excessive greed, for they are 

 usually so fully gorged as to be indisposed for any 

 active exertion. 



During their nesting-times spotted doves become 

 perfect little furies, 1 and are always on the war- 

 path, assaulting and driving off any birds who 

 may approach their domiciles. No matter how 

 formidable the intruders may be, the energy with 

 which they are attacked generally puts them to 

 immediate flight. Not without good cause, tree- 

 pies are the objects of their acute dislike, and are 

 constantly exposed to quite unprovoked assaults 

 even when there is no nest in question. Spotted 

 doves, when fighting, strike violently with their 

 wings, and also pluck out large mouthfuls of feathers 

 from their enemies' bodies. Under climatic con- 

 ditions such as those of Calcutta there is no time 

 of year in which they do not build, but a larger 

 number of nests are usually to be met with during 

 the latter part of the cold weather and throughout 

 the succeeding hot and dry months than at other 



1 They are a little larger than common turtle-doves, 



