TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



PACK 



PREFACE, by OSCAR RIDDLE iii 



EDITORIAL STATEMENT, by HARVEY A. CARR v-vii 



CHAPTER I. The Muting Period 3-14 



The Breeding Season 4 



Prolongation of Breeding Season in Wild Pigeons "> 



Length of Mating Period 6 



Initiation of the Cycle 7 



Manner of Display 10 



Striking or Stamping 11 



Charging and Driving 12 



Periodicity of the Disposition to Fight 13 



Jealousy 14 



CHAPTER II. The Mating Period (continued) 15-26 



Behavior in Uniting 15 



Behavior of the Bronze- Wing 15 



Comparative Behavior 17 



The "Jumping Over" Phenomenon 18 



Billing and "Feeding" by the Male in Mating Behavior 18 



The Quest for a Nest 20 



Nest-Building 21 



On the Method of Nest-Building 21 



On the Purpose of Nest-Building 22 



Nest-Call 23 



The Purpose of the Nest-Call 23 



The Nature of the Nest-Call 23 



The Nest-Call of the Male Bronze-Wing 24 



Ground-Call of the Male Bronze- Wing 25 



Nest-Call of the Female Bronze-Wing 25 



Nest-Call and Mating Instinct in the Young 25 



CHAPTER III. The Pairing of Pigeons 27-40 



Influence of Behavior 27 



Influence of Voice 28 



Influence of Social Environment 28 



Pairing of Females 28 



Pairing of Males 35 



Promiscuous Tendencies 36 



Unusual Proclivities 37 



A Special Case not Aberrant Mentality 38 



CHAPTER IV. The Incubation Period 41-52 



Length of the Period 41 



Number of Eggs 43 



Time of Laying 43 



Behavior in Laying 48 



Time of Hatching 50 



Method of Hatching 52 



Increased Interest at Hatching 52 



CHAPTER V. Incubation Behavior 53-62 



Early Incubation 53 



Typical Incubation Records 54 



Roosting Habits 55 



Alternation 56 



Initiative in Interchange ">7 



Defective Alternation 58 



Copulation 59 



Nest-Building 59 



Neatness in Nest 60 



Influence of Temperature 61 



Hiding on the Nest 61 



Voice 61 



Nest-Call 61 



Alighting, or Short-note Call 62 



IX 



