VARIOUS DOVES. 379 



from Peninsular India, in which the plumage is vinous red ; the lower back, rump, 



and flanks grey; the head, under wing-coverts, lower abdomen, and under tail-coverts 



similarly coloured but paler; the outer wing-coverts darker, the chin whitish, 



the vinous red upper-parts separated from the grey of the head by a black collar 



on the hind-neck ; and the quills blackish wdth pale edges. A nearly allied form {T. 



hwmilis) from the Indo-Chinese countries, is distinguished by having the under 



wing-coverts much darker and of a grey colour. In Tenasserim it is found in 



larger or smaller flocks, very wild and difiicult to approach, and keeping to the thin 



tree and bamboo-jungle. These flocks were met with in the vicinity of cultivated 



land, feeding on the ground, and when disturbed rose together and settled on the 



same tree, sometimes a leafless one, sometimes one with plenty of foliage. 



The three species of turtle-dove constituting the fourth group (Spilopelia) are 



distinguished by having the feathers of the hind-neck forked at the extremity, and 



black ornamented with two white spots at the tip. The Burmo-Malayan species 



(T. tigrinus), recognised by the dark brown shaft-line on the wing-coverts, is the 



common dove of Tenasserim, and is met with in gardens, fields, and grassy land ; 



in fact, wherever the country is open, but not in the forest or on the higher hills. 



It is sometimes seen singly, or in pairs, at other times in small flocks or in hundreds. 



The last group (Stigmatopelia) includes two species which may be recognised by 



having the feathers of the fore-neck forked at the extremity, and black with two 



rufous spots at the end. They have a wide range, the Senegal turtle-dove {T. 



senegalensis) being found all over Africa, while the brown turtle-dove {T. carn- 



hayensis) ranges from Asia Minor to Central India. The former is characterised by 



the plumage of the upper-parts being more or less reddish, and the rump bluish grey. 



The subfamily Geopeliince contains three genera, with a few small species from 



both the Old and New Worlds, and is characterised by the short rounded wings, 



a rather long tail of fourteen feathers, and no metallic tint on the sides of the neck 



or elsewhere. The Old World forms belong to the typical Geopelia, ranging from 



Burma to Australia, and have the first quill-feather pointed at the extremity. The 



American genus, Scardafella, includes two doves about the size of sparrows, with 



the first flight-feathers normal, and the tail of twelve feathers ; the Inca dove (S. 



inea) from the South- Western, North, and Central America being a well-known 



example. But a single species {Gymnopelia erythrothorax) is included in the last 



genus, distinguished by the large naked patch surrounding the eye. 



The six American genera of the subfamily FeristeHnce are 



American Genera. 1 • p i j. • u 



characterised by their small size and the general uniform coloration ot 



the plumage ; the wings being, as a rule, ornamented with metallic spots, and rather 



short and rounded, while the primaries are not much longer than the secondaries. 



In five genera the tail is rather longer than half the length of the wing ; while 



the two last may be distinguished by having the first primary pointed at its 



extremity. The picui dove (Columbula picui), the only representative of the first 



genus, is peculiar in having a steel-blue band across the wing, and by the middle 



and outer pairs of tail-feathers being shorter than the intermediate ones. Found 



only in South America, it is the smallest dove of Argentina w^here it is a resident, 



frequenting the neighbourhood of houses ; and its song, consisting of a succession 



of long, rather loud and somewhat monotonous notes, may often be heard in 



