LITTORAL LAND BIRDS. 273 



impetuous haste. It is more or less gregarious all 

 the year round, and may frequently be seen in 

 flocks on the fields near its native cliffs. Its 

 food is composed of grain and seeds of all kinds, 

 and the buds and shoots of plants. Its flight is 

 rapid and well sustained. I was told by the natives 

 of St. Kilda that the Rock Doves frequenting the 

 islands cross the sea every day a distance of 

 seventy miles to feed on the Hebrides, and there 

 can be little or no doubt about this, for St. Kilda 

 contains little suitable food for this grain-loving 

 bird. Its note is the familiar coo. 



The Rock Dove is an early breeder, congregating 

 in colonies on such cliffs as afford it the necessary 

 shelter. Wherever possible the nests are made in 

 caves ; where these are wanting the birds scatter 

 themselves about the cliffs, and place their nests in 

 any convenient fissure or cleft. The bird pairs for 

 life, and yearly resorts to the same breeding 

 stations, some of the caves gaining a local reputa- 

 tion in this respect. The nest is placed on some 

 ledge or in a cranny, and consists of a little dry 

 grass, twigs, roots, or stems of plants, arranged in 

 a flat plate-like form. The two eggs are pure 

 white. This species may be found breeding all the 

 summer through, and rears two, if not more, broods 

 each season. The Rock Dove is found on almost 

 all parts of the rocky coasts of Europe and the out- 

 lying islands. 



