142 OUR RARER BIRDS 



that the young naturalist may rest assured that the true wild 

 Eock Dove is only to be found on the maritime cliffs. 



As you wander along the wild shore at low water beneath 

 the lofty wall of cliffs, you will often startle the wary Eock 

 Dove from its haunt far above your head. Or when rowing 

 past the rocks, the sound of your clumsy oars in the row-locks 

 frightens the Doves from the shelves and fissures ; and as you 

 approach the entrance of the black-looking caves, in which 

 the water is ever dashing with a thunder-like roar, the 

 birds hurry out on rapidly-beating wings to a safer refuge in 

 the cliffs. Not unfrequently when you are wandering along 

 the breezy tops of the cliffs, knee-deep in heather, seapinks, 

 and other vegetation, you will see the Eock Doves fly out 

 from some part of the rocks below, and hurry out for some 

 little distance over the sea, then suddenly turn and fly to land 

 to feed on the rough pastures or the weedy stubbles. They 

 are more or less gregarious birds all the year, and may often 

 be seen feeding in large flocks, the essence of wariness. 

 They run about the ground in true Pigeon style, bobbing 

 their head at each step, picking up the seeds and scattered 

 grain. If alarmed they fly up, but never by any chance take 

 refuge in a tree, either flying off to a more distant part of the 

 fields, or returning to their haunts on the adjoining cliffs. 

 The flight of the Eock Dove is very powerful, performed by 

 a series of rapid beatings of the wings ; but sometimes the 

 bird sweeps down from the sky with wings held perfectly 

 still into its gloomy cave or on to the pastures. It is capable 

 of flying for very long distances at a time ; and the natives of 

 St. Kilda, every one of them practical ornithologists, told me 

 that the Eock Doves that breed there flew across to the 

 Hebrides every day to feed, a distance of seventy miles ! The 

 note of this bird is very similar to that of the Eing Dove, a 

 -soft full coo, roo, coo, variously modulated when the bird is 

 excited by the tender passions of love. It is very noisy in 



