112 The Apparent Assumption of a Distinctive Phase of


THE APPARENT ASSUMPTION


OF A DISTINCTIVE PHASE OF BREEDING PLUMAGE

IN THE MALE PLUMED GROUND DOVE.


By E. W. H. Blagg.


Towards the end of the month of June, 1911, I obtained a

pair of the very pretty Australian Plumed Ground Dove (.Lophophaps

leucogaster). Within a few minutes of being turned into the aviary

the cock bird proclaimed his sex by bowing and showing off to his

mate, with outspread wings and tail. In all the published accounts

of this species that I have had access to it is stated that the cock

and hen bird are identical in the colouring and marking of their

plumage, and so were these two birds on arrival, and so they remained

until the early summer of 1912, when the cock bird, by moult,

changed the colour of his plumes from fawn colour to blue grey, and

the posterior part of the crown of the head also became blue grey

instead of fawn colour. At the same time the black marking on his

throat became more extensive and pronounced.


In this state of plumage, not even the most earless observer

could say that the sexes were alike in colouring. I used to amuse

myself by asking casual visitors to my birds, ‘‘ Do you see any

difference in those two birds ? ” and at once would come the reply,

“ Certainly, one has a blue head and the other one has a brown

head.”


At this time I was speculating as to whether my bird would

retain his blue head for the rest of his life, or whether he would

reassume his brown head at his autumnal moult: in the former case

I should have drawn the conclusion that the blue head was the mark

of full maturity, and in the latter case that the blue head marked the

full breeding plumage. I was also wondering whether the hen bird

was going to follow the lead of her mate, and change the colour of

her plumes, &c., for in that case the sexes would still be alike.

But no, the hen’s plumes have always remained brown, and at his

autumn moult the cock reassumed brown plumes. At the beginning

of this summer, 1913, his head again became blue, and at his autumn

moult he has once more grown brown plumes.


It would be interesting to hear whether anyone who has kept



