THE NICOBAR GROUND-PIGEON. 223 



into golden green, cupreous, and deep purplish-red. 

 The feathers upon the neck are long, narrow, and 

 acuminate, like those of the domestic cock ; their 

 barbules towards the tip silky and distinct. The 

 tail is very short and pendant, and nearly square, and 

 the wings, when closed, reach nearly to its end. The 

 legs, which are robust, and of moderate length, are 

 black, and covered with hexagonal scales. The nails 

 are yellow, slightly curved, and blunt. 



Besides the Island of Nicobar, from whence its 

 trivial name, this species inhabits the Islands of Java 

 and Sumatra, as well as many others in the great 

 Archipelago of the Moluccas. The female resembles 

 the male in the colour of her plumage, but the fea- 

 thers upon the neck are not so long or narrow, and 

 she is also destitute of the maxillary fleshy knob. 



The last bird we have to describe constitutes the 

 type of the 



