XII. 



BIRDS AND THEIR CHANGING 

 HABITS. 



THE wood pigeon or ring dove is usually and 

 rightly looked upon as a bird of a shy and re- 

 tiring nature, an inhabitant of woods and forests, 

 although no doubt frequenting more cultivated 

 areas in search of food, of which, by the way, it 

 seems to require an extraordinary amount in 

 proportion to its size. All sportsmen are well 

 aware of its vigilance and alertness, of its keen 

 sight and distrust of man in its normal state. 

 It is true that in the nesting season individual 

 pairs sometimes throw off this natural shyness, 

 and are found nesting in close proximity to 

 dwelling-houses, where they have found them- 

 selves unmolested ; yet one would have thought 

 the wood pigeon one of the last birds to become 

 a dweller in cities and the busy haunts of man. 

 Such, however, is the case ; for the last two or 

 three years the wood pigeon has become an 



ever-increasing resident and nesting species in 

 K i 45 



