new Species of Dove 3G9 



Catalogue of Lord. Derby's Collection this specimen has the 

 same register-number as examples of Leptoptila jamaicensis. 

 It is evident, however, that the author of the register 

 did not perceive how utterly different tbe specimen under 

 consideration is from the Jamaican bird. 



(3) Dr. Forbes and Mr. Robinson say that the bird they 

 call H. principalis " very nearly agrees with the description 

 of Columba erythrothorax Terara. et Knip, from Surinam. " 

 This is a species which has not hitherto been identified and 

 is said to have the under tail-coverts " cinnamon, not hoary 

 -grey as in their specimen." Neither of the statements in this 

 paragraph are quite exact : I find that the specimen belonging 

 to the Derby Museum has the under tail-coverts not hoary 

 grey, but pure white, and besides the bird is quite different, 

 from the figure of Columba erythrothorax, which, as I have 

 already stated in the ' Catalogue of Birds ' (vol. xxi. p. 539), 

 I have very little doubt represents the African Haplopelia 

 larva ta. 



Having so far discussed the statements made by Dr. Forbes 

 and Mr. Robinson with regard to the interesting specimen 

 which they have attributed to H. principalis, I may add that 

 it is totally different from all the other known species of the 

 genus Haplopelia, and that Dr. Reichenow agrees with me 

 in believing that it belongs to an undescribed species. 

 Unfortunately, its locality is not known, but it is probably 

 from some part of Western Africa. 



Being on the subject of Haplopelia, I may remark that 

 Capt. Alexander (Bull. B. O. C. xiii. p. 33) has described a 

 new Haplopelia poensis, (i similar to H. principalis, but with the 

 under tail- coverts ashy (cinereis) instead of white." More 

 recently, however (Ibis, 1903, p. 396) he has rejected this 

 species, which he identifies with Haplopelia simplex (Hartl.) 

 from San Thome. But I much doubt the correctness of this 

 identification, from the fact that between Fernando Po and 

 San Thome lies Prince's Island, where H. principalis, a per- 

 fectly distinct species, is found. It appears to me very 

 improbable that the same species should exist in Fernando 

 Po and San Thome, while a different species lives in the 

 intervening Prince's Island. 



