CROWNED PIGEONS. 229 



although always erect, the bird has the power of 

 still further elevating and bringing down to the 

 base of the bill : the irides are bright red ; feet 

 and legs speckled with black. 



These birds inhabit the Eastern Archipelago, 

 and the present specimens had been brought 

 from the island of Ternate. I saw at Batavia 

 two living specimens, which had been just brought 

 in a vessel from Amboyna ; but they were re- 

 garded as a very delicate bird, and difficult to 

 keep alive ; yet I observed, in a newspaper, 

 (April 15th, 1832,) that a pair of these birds had 

 been landed in England from the Kingsdown : 

 they had been brought from New Guinea. " It 

 was the mournful notes of this bird," as therein 

 stated, " that greatly alarmed the crew of the 

 Boiigaijivllle, on landing at some of the Molucca 

 Islands, which they took to be the cries of dis- 

 tress of the human species." It was further stated, 

 that they had been presented to the Surrey Zoo- 

 logical Gardens, by Captain Underwood. 



"At Tomoguy," says Captain Forrest, "I 

 bought three of the large crowned pigeons, very 

 well represented byDampier. TheMolucca people 

 call them Midutu, and the Papuas Manipi. My 

 pigeons grew tame, and eat Indian corn called 

 Jaggon. They strike hard with their wings, on 

 which is a kind of horn. One of the three 



