286 COLUMBINE. 



white, measuring one inch six lines and a half in length, and 

 one inch two lines in breadth. The food of this species is 

 very similar to that of the Ring Dove, namely, young 

 green leaves, peas, grain, seeds, berries, turnip leaves, beech 

 nuts, acorns, &c., according to the season of the year. 



The young of the Stock Dove are frequently sent to the 

 London market, and sold to the poulterers, and I have this 

 day, January 4, 1840, bought two old birds which have 

 also been sent up to market for sale ; these came packed with 

 some Ring Doves, and appear to have been shot with them. 



Columba anas is, in truth, a southern species. According 

 to Sir William Jardine, Mr. Macgillivray, and other autho- 

 rities, it is not found in Scotland, in the Hebrides, in Ork- 

 ney, or in Shetland, where the Rock Dove is common on 

 most of the high cliffs and promontories at the sea side 

 which have caves or fissures. When the Stock Dove does 

 go northward, it is only as a summer visiter. M. Nilsson 

 includes it among the birds of Sweden, and has given an 

 excellent figure of it in the coloured illustrations of his 

 Scandinavian Fauna. In that country, where the Rock 

 Dove is also found, the Stock Dove builds in holes of trees, 

 and departs southward in autumn with the Ring Dove. M. 

 Vieillot says it is only a summer visiter to Germany and 

 France, and always found to inhabit woods in the interior 

 of each country. It is found in Provence and the eastern 

 part of Spain. It is abundant in Italy during September, 

 October, and November, then frequently going farther 

 south. It is included among the Birds of Madeira. It is 

 found in Corfu, Sicily and Malta, going from thence in 

 autumn to Algeria. Mr. Selby and M. Temminck con- 

 sider it as widely diffused in North Africa, but not going 

 southward of the tropic ; and the Zoological Society have 

 recently received specimens from Erzeroom, which agree 



