THE ISLANDS OF THE BAY OF BENGAL. 261 



lower tail coverts a deeper maroon chesrrat than in any con- 

 tinental Indian birds I have yet seen, and out of 25 specimens 

 from the Andamans not one has such a brilliantly red copper 

 gloss as some continental examples exhibit, but these differences 

 are quite insufficient to separate our bird, and I could pick out 

 many Andaman specimens absolutely identical with continental 

 Indian ones. All that can be said is that as a race it is of the largest 

 size, greener, with deeper colored under-tail coverts and whiter 

 forehead and throat than any continental race taken as a whole. 

 These remarks apply only to the Andaman bird, that from the 

 Nicobars must, I believe, be specifically separated. 



The following are the dimensions and other particulars record- 

 ed from the fresh birds. Here also there is no constant difference 

 in the size of the sexes, all that can be said is that here and 

 there a male is met with larger than any female : — 



Length, 15 - 5 to 17*5; expanse, 26*25 to 28*5; wing, 8*5 

 to 9*5; tail, from vent, 5*75 to 7 ; tarsus, 1*1 to 1*25 ; bill, 

 from gape, 1*4 to 1'5; bill, at front, 0'9 to l'O ; weight, 

 12 ozs. to 1 lb. 4 ozs. 



The legs and feet are purplish pink ; the bill dull pinkish 

 blue ; nail whitish ; the irides vary from dull brownish red to 

 deep crimson lake. 



Davison remarks : — " The Imperial pigeon was very abun- 

 dant at the Andamans when I first arrived there in December, 

 but they had become much less numerous by April following ; 

 this was no doubt owing to the growing scarcity of wild fruits 

 which abound in the forests about December and January. In 

 habits they are precisely similar to the Indian bird, being found 

 singly,, in pairs, or small flocks, keeping entirely to the larger 

 forest trees and living exclusively on fruit, especially on the mace 

 of the wild nutmeg, for although they swallow the nutmeg and as 

 well as the mace, it is only this latter that is digested, the former 

 being voided." 



In Southern India this is so well known, and the good taste 

 of the birds who always select the ripest and finest fruit so 

 thoroughly relied upon, that people are sent round specially to 

 collect the nutmegs thus discarded by these pigeons, as these 

 are the best nutmegs and can most be relied on for seed. In 

 the same way coffee berries passed by jackalls and monkeys 

 are collected for seeds, and used in preference to those gathered 

 in the ordinary way, the theory being that birds and animals 

 only eat the perfectly ripe fruit when they have a large choice, 

 and that the seeds of these germinate more freely than the 

 more or less unripe ones of which the coolies are certain to 



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