150 PIGEON SHOOTING. 



them to forget tlieir independence. The wing 

 feathers of pigeons, which are very strong, cause 

 that flapping and tumultuous noise so often heard 

 in our forests, and so often the cause of their dis- 

 covery. They are veiy gregarious, and retire, in 

 large flocks, at times, to a common roosting place. 



The name ringdove has been bestowed on the 

 bird from the conspicuous marking of dullish white 

 that intervenes, in the neck, between the rich green 

 and pui-ple rays of the neck and breast ; the webs of 

 these feathers are there unconnected. 



Generic character : bill of medium strength, cen- 

 treiorly deflected ; maxilla with a slight angle ; 

 nostrils nearly linear, widest anteriorly, and covered 

 with a soft protuberant cartilage ; tarsi short, partly 

 feathered in front ; toes entirely divided, hind toe of 

 considerable length ; wings powerful, rather pointed, 

 second quill longest. 



Types : C. i^alumhus, troiads, &c. Cosmopolite. 



Note. Breed on trees ; gregarious in mnter ; 

 incessorial, but breed with facility. 



The Rock-pigeon is a variety to which our 

 ornithologists refer the domestic pigeon of our cotes. 

 The "blue-rock" is the decoy of the pigeon-shooter 

 of the present day. This species inhabits the hollow 

 caves and bare rocks of the sea-shore. In the printer 

 they feed on the grains and seeds of the region, 

 and on the laud mollusca. They are gregarious, 

 and adhere pretty closely to the coast, where their 

 murmuring notes may be frequently distinguished 



