96 Captain R. ]Mcinertzhagen vn 



plentiful. A fe^v still remain in the south-west corner of 

 the island and are said to be increasing. 



They are very tame and confiding and do not seem to care 

 for the high forest ti'ces. Monkeys are doubtless responsible 

 for their extirpation. They liave a heavy flight, but never 

 go very far. 



This species has a bad reputation from a culinary point of 

 view. Etienne van der Hagen, who visited Mauritius in 

 1607, said that his men suflered from a peculiar sickness, 

 characterized by extreme lassitude, which he argues was 

 caused by this Pigeon ('^rouges aussi bien par le corps qu'a 

 la queue ''). 



Bernadin de St. Pierre (vol. i. p. 125) also says : " There is 

 a pigeon which tastes well, but to eat it is so dangerous that 

 those Avho do are seized with convulsions." 



Other writers testify to its bad efi'ects. 



Needless to say, the bird is now protected by law, which 

 forbids any experiments, but its reputation was so bad that 

 in 1818 the Natural History Society of Mauritius asked for 

 "further particulars about this pigeon which was reported 

 poisonous.^' Monsieur Emraerez de Charmoy has eaten the 

 bird and tells me that its flesh is bitter, but that no ill effect 

 was experienced. 



Several pairs of this Pigeon are kept in private aviaries in 

 INIauritius, but nobody has yet been successful in breeding 

 them in captivity. 



32. *? TUKTLR PICTUKATUS. 



Turtur picturatns Salvador!, Cat. Birds, xxi. p. 409. 



Pigeon Ramier. 



There appears to be some doubt as to whether this species 

 was introduced or not. The bird, or varieties of it, is 

 common in Madagascar, Seychelles, Aldabra, Reunion, and 

 the Comoros. 



It is of course quite possible that it is part of the ancient 

 bird-life of the island ; but if so, it is remarkable that it has 

 not developed some peculiar form. In other islands such 

 species as T. rostratus and T. aldabranus are, I believe, 

 only insular forms of this species. 



