66 



MY FOREIGN DOVES AND PIGEONS, 



had a way of getting over on her back and not 

 being able to right lierself again, but would la}' 

 quite helpless. Many a time she was rescued, 

 but early one morning she was found dead, having 

 got over on her back, and no one being by to save 

 her. Dr. Butler mentions that one of his cocks, 

 when weak and ill, also rolled over on its back, 

 and perhaps it is an accident peculiar to this dove, 

 for I cannot recall any other liind that does the 

 same. 



The Cape dove is only imported now and then, 

 and on the whole the price has risen. About eight 

 years ago these birds were 13/6 the pair; now a 

 good healthy pair will often fetch 20/-. This dove, 

 like most of the smaller varieties, cannot stand our 

 English winter without heat, and must be brought 

 indoors in good time. 



THE TAMBOURINE DOVE. 



(Tympanistria hicolor). 



Habitat. — The whole of South and South-\\'est 

 Africa, on the West Coast as far as Casamance, 

 and on the East Coast as far as Mombas. It is 

 found in Caffraria, also in Madagascar, the 

 Comero Islands, and Fernando Po. 



Length. — About 8 inches. Shape, very rounded, 

 and sturd}'. 



Colouring. — The cock is dark chocolate-brown, 

 but the forehead, face, breast, and underparts are 

 snowy white, the light and dark plumage being 

 clearly defined and making a very beautiful con- 

 trast. On the wings are a few metallic spots of 

 dark green or purple. Under the wings the 

 feathers are a warm cinnamon colour, but it is only 

 noticeable when the wing is raised. This feature 

 is very common in many other doves besides the 

 Tambourine. The feet are crimson, the eyes hazel. 

 In shape this dove is sturdy and compact. The 

 hen is a decidedly lighter brown than the cock, 

 and her white parts are much greyer, while the 

 wing spots are not metallic. 



WILD LIFE. 



The Tambourine was so named by Levaillant 

 because he thought its cooing resembled the sound 

 of a tambourine at a distance. He evidently con- 

 sidered it a rare dove, as he informed M. 

 Temminck that for 200 specimens of another 

 species he could only obtain 27 of this. Levaillant 

 records it as arboreal in its habits, and it is said 

 to build in the great African woods on the summit 

 of trees. 



Dr. Butler tells us that the Tambourine feeds 

 largely on the dropped seeds of the castor-oil plant 

 and other plants, and that it descends to the 

 ground to feed. The flight in its wild state is 



exceedingly swift. The coo, beginning slowly, 

 grows faster and faster, till it ends in a vibration. 



The friend who sent over my three birds (two 

 cocks and a hen) told me how ver)' wild he found 

 these doves when first caught, and that unless their 

 wings were clipped the}' would dash upwards and 

 either stun or kill themselves against the cage top. 

 One cock struck his head witli such force that 

 the)' believed him dead,> but after a time he 

 recovered, though a second one died. An interest- 

 ing account is given by Mr. Robin Kemp of the 

 Tambourine dove from his personal experience of 

 it in Africa. 



A native brought him six or seven of these doves 

 which he had trapped in a rice field. All their 

 flight feathers, and in most cases their tail 

 feathers, had been ruthlessl}' plucked out. This 

 possibly was done to prevent the birds escaping, 

 but on the other hand the natives seem to have 

 no regard for the sufferings of animal and bird life. 

 I have heard of them selecting the bluntest knife 

 they could find and sawing it across the neck of a 

 chicken to prolong the poor thing's agony when 

 being l-cilled. 



Mr. Kemp's birds seem to have been of botli 

 sexes, for some had white and others greyish 

 breasts. He fed them on rice, with which diet 

 they seemed quite contented, but he never 

 succeeded in getting them to live in captivity for 

 more than a few months. They were very plenti- 

 ful (in South-East Sierra Leone) and resident 

 throughout the year. 



LIFE IN CAPTIVITY. 



The Zoological Gardens in Regent's Park 

 possessed three cocks and one hen Tambourine 

 dove as far back as 1871. After 1883 it was im- 

 ported freely, and then again it ceased. 



At the present time this dove seems hardly 

 obtainable. A year or two ago a dealer told me 

 he had sold some for about 10/- a pair, but he did 

 it not knowing what the birds were, nor their 

 worth, as this sum is not a tithe of their real value. 

 The three birds I had were very quiet — they seldom 

 moved about the aviary, and did not interfere with 

 my other birds. I Is;ept them in an aviary that 

 can be heated in winter, for this little dove is only 

 half hardy. Dr. Greene, who kept a pair of these 

 birds, considered them charming; he likened the 

 coo to the sound of water being poured from a 

 bottle, the cock bowing and spreading his tail at 

 the same time, when making love to the hen ; she, 

 however, was very quiet, and the only sound she 

 ever made was a little "huh." 



This pair of birds, in addition to their seed diet, 

 were very fond of insects — flies, beetles, and ants, 

 also mollusca, whether small snails or slugs; they 



