87 



18. Helicina suBL^viGATA, Pfr. H. testd conoideo-depressd, 

 soUduId, sublcBvigatd, nitiduld, unicolore rubelld vel albidd, 

 subtus violaceo zonatd ; spird breviter conoided, vertice obtusulo; 

 anfractibus 5 vix convexiusculis, ultimo latiore, peripherid ob- 

 solete angulato ; aperturd diagonali, subsemiovali ; columelld 

 brevi, simplice, callum crassiusculum, circumscriptum retrorsum 

 emittente ; peristomate simplice, breviter expanso, margine 

 basalifere rectilineari, ad columellam subdentato. Operadnm 

 tenue, corneum. 



Diam. maj. 8, min. 6^ alt. 3 mill. 



Hab. in Novis Hebridibus. 



3. Notes on the Didunculus, a species of Pigeon supposed 



TO BE PECULIAR TO THE NaVIGATOr's IsLANDS. By LlEUT. 



THE Hon. F. Walpole, R.N. Communicated by J. H. 

 GuRNEY, Esq., F.Z.S. 



May 25. 



Lieut. Walpole always saw this bird (when in its natural state) 

 either perching on trees or flying about them, — feeding by day and 

 roosting by night among the branches. He never saw them on the 

 ground, though he has seen places where they appeared to have been 

 scratching, either for roots or for other food. The crops of the spe- 

 cimens which he examined were, however, generally filled with green 

 berries, which grew in clusters on a species of ash. The number of 

 specimens so examined was considerable, as the birds formed Lieut. 

 Walpole's principal food while on these islands. He found the flesh 

 most excellent, though in colour darker even that of the English 

 wood-pigeon. The flight of the Didunculus is mostly limited to a 

 transit from wood to wood, as they rarely attempt to pass from one 

 island to another, — the distance between the islands varying from tea 

 to eighty nautical miles. 



Though their flight appears to be inferior to that of most pigeons, 

 it is of the same swooping and continuous character. 



They retire late to roost, but are not nocturnal. 



They are generally seen either in pairs or in small flocks. The 

 largest flock seen by Lieut. Walpole consisted of nine. 



In the breeding season they pair and retire to the interior of the 

 islands, where they nest amongst the rocks. 



Lieut. Walpole does not know the colour or number of the eggs, 

 but states that the young are naked and helpless. 



The male bird is superior to the female in size, colour, and carriage, 

 but does not attain his full plumage until the second year. 



The natives of the Samoon Islands are fond of keeping the Bidun- 

 culi tame as pets, either taking them from the nest, or, when older, 

 with bird-lime. 



They attach the bird by a long string fastened round one leg to a 

 stick about two feet in length, with a fork at the end, which is stuck 

 generally in the wall inside the hut, but sometimes in the ground 

 outside. 



