THE IMPERIAL GREEN PIGEON. 301 



Subfamily CARPOPHAGIN^E. 



Genus CARPOPHAGA, Selby. 



660. CARPOPHAGA JENEA. 

 THE IMPERIAL GREEN PIGEON. 



Columba aenea, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 283. Columba sylvatica, Tick. J. A. S. B. 

 ii. p. 581. Carpophaga sylvatica, Jcrd. B. Ind. ii. p. 455; David et Oust. 

 O/.y. Chine, p. 381. Carpophaga aenea, Hume, Nests and Eggs, p. 496 ; id. 

 S. F. ii. p. 260, iii. p. 163 j Bl B. Burm. p. 144 ; Wald. Trans. Zool. Soc. ix. 

 p. 215 j Armstrong, S. F. iv. p. 337 ; Inglis, S. F. v. p. 39 ; Hume $ Dav. S. F. 

 vi. p. 416 j Hume, S. F. viii. p. 109 ; Legge, Birds Ceylon, p. 718 ; Bingham, S. F. 

 ix. p. 194 ; Parker, S. F. ix. p. 481 ; Gates, S. F. x. p. 235 ; Kelham, Ibis, 1881, 

 p. 527. 



Description. Male and female. The whole head and neck and the entire 

 under plumage pearl-grey tinged with ruddy ; base of the bill and the chin 

 whitish ; under tail-coverts deep maroon ; back, rump, upper tail-coverts, 

 tertiaries and upper wing-coverts brilliant coppery green, with a purple, 

 blue or lilac gloss in places ; tail dark coppery green, the neighbourhood 

 of the shafts purple or blue ; primaries and secondaries greenish brown, 

 tinged with ashy on the outer webs. 



Iris red ; bill grey ; the region of the nostrils dull red ; edges of the 

 eyelids, legs and feet purplish red. 



Length 17 inches, tail 6*5, wing 9, tarsus I'l, bill from gape 1'5. 

 The female is smaller. This species varies very much in size, some indi- 

 viduals being very small. The variation in size, coupled with variations 

 in colour, have given rise to the separation of this bird into many species, 

 the validity of which is very doubtful. 



The Imperial Green Pigeon is common over the whole Province, alike 

 in the hills and plains where there is forest. 



It is found over the whole of India except the north-west portion, in 

 Ceylon and the Andamans, the Indo-Burmese countries, South China and 

 Cochin China. It extends down the Malay peninsula ; and, with modifi- 

 cations of plumage and size, it occurs in Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Flores, 

 Lombock and the Philippine Islands. 



This fine large Pigeon is generally diffused throughout the forests and 

 the well-wooded parts of the country, wherever, in fact, there are trees 

 which yield edible fruits ; and it is a resident. It is entirely arboreal, 

 going about in parties and occasionally in couples, and feeds on fruit. It 

 makes its nest in thickets and bamboo bushes, and lays but one egg. Mr. 

 Inglis, however, brings to notice that he once found two young birds in 

 the same nest. Capt. Bingham found the nest in Tenasserim in March. 



