NESTING. 



fix vour branches, and have all ready for the little 

 housekeepers to start their summer homes by the 

 beginning- of March, for doves begin nesting very 

 early. Having fixed your branches, 3"Our next 

 work is to tie up your nesting pans. Doves are 

 noted for their frail and careless nests ; sometimes 

 the eggs can even be seen from below, so lightly 

 have the twigs been arranged, so if your 3'Oung 

 birds are to be secure from falling out it is best to 

 put some receptacle for the birds to build in. 



I have read a pretty old legend of how, long- 

 ago, the Sphinx called all the birds together to 

 come and have a lesson on how to build a nest. 

 The audience dulv assembled, but the dove flew 

 away almost at the beginning of the lecture, quite 

 satisfied that she had learnt all there was to learn, 

 and, one bv one, at later intervals, the other birds 

 followed her bad example, till only one bird was 

 left, the little swallow, who stayed till the very last 

 word. Now vou see why the dove builds such a 

 very poor nest, and the swallow (because it learnt 

 the lesson properly) the most perfect nest of all, 

 for it learnt what none of the others did — to make 

 a roof over its little home and to make it weather- 

 proof. 



At one time I used to make my nest baskets 

 myself of wicker ; they are very easy to make, but 

 1 have discarded them now for pans made of zinc. 

 I get these made at our local ironmonger's, and 

 the price is 6d. to gd. according to the size. They 

 are round, the bottom just a little concave. The 

 rim is some ij inches deep, and slants rather out- 

 wards. Round it at intervals are holes punched 

 (to pass string through when tying the nests to 

 the branches) in pairs, about an inch between. 

 About five pairs of holes are in each pan. The 

 edge of the brim is rolled over wire so that it is 

 not sharp or cutting. If any reader cares to get 

 .these nest pans, they can be obtained from Messrs. 

 Shaw, ironmongers. Bridge Street, Worksop, but 

 it would be as well to mention they are to be like 

 those Messrs. Shaw make for myself, and also to 

 state the size required. A useful size is 75 inches 

 across from rim to rim ; for very large pigeons 

 they would be better 9 inches. 



To each pair of birds allow two nests. The 

 reason for this is that the parents will probably 

 begin to want to nest again before the first 3'oung 

 ones are ready to leave the nest, and, if they have 

 nowhere else to go to, they ma\' compel the young 

 ones to leave their nursery before the)' are really 

 old enough, whereas if a second nest-pan is pro- 

 vided the eggs will probably be laid in it, and the 

 non-sitting parent (the cock sits in the day-time, 

 the hen at night) will look after the nestlings. For 

 if your first motto in keeping doves is "Do not 

 over-crowd," vour second should be: Keep your 



young ones in the nest as long as you can. The\". 

 will be all the stronger for it; indeed, I do nob 

 know but that it would not pay in the end to take 

 away the second clutch of eggs (if the old birds 

 started again when the young were only about loi 

 days old) and put them under Barbary Doves as' 

 foster-parents, if possible, so as to allow all their 

 attention to be given to the existing young birds. 



An important point is how many nesting pairs 

 to allow to each aviary? To reall}' do well I do 

 j-iot think more than two pairs should be allowed 

 in an aviary 16 ft. x 6 ft., for if one pair starts 

 before the other it sometimes happens that 3-ou 

 cannot remove your 3"Oung birds when you would,- 

 because your second pair of birds are sitting, and 

 you dare not risk disturbing them b3- doing any 

 catching, so vou must just watch 3'our chance — 

 it may be not for weeks — when 3'ou can remove 

 your young ones safely. So that, though your 

 aviarv mav look empty with onl3' two pairs in at 

 the beginning of the season, it is better than being; 

 too full, and vou can leave your young ones in 

 longer in consenuence. 



Possibly vou have no spare place for 3-our young 

 birds, and you must keep them till the3' are nearl3- 

 adult, and till quite the end of the season. If this 

 is so, be sure and put rings on the legs of 3'Our 

 old birds before the nesting begins, or 3'ou will be 

 parting with an old bird in mistake for a young 

 one, and this is a most vexing thing to do. In 

 "The Feathered World" you will find plent)- of 

 rings advertised in the pigeon appliance column. 

 The kind I get are made of some soft metal that 

 can be pulled open, the two ends fitting V-shaped 

 into each other when closed again on the bird's 

 leg. These rings can be had stamped with the 

 date of the year, and in different sizes. If I 

 remember rightly, my own came from a Mr. 

 Hughes, who probably still advertises them. It is 

 easy to ring a dove 5-ourself. Opien the ring first 

 and lay it by you, then catch your bird and hold it 

 in your left hand firmly, with its back against 3-our 

 chest, then gentlv pull out the leg to be ringed 

 with 3'Our right hand (keeping it extended between 

 the first and second finger of your left hand), slip 

 the ring round the ankle and close it with your free 

 right hand. After a little practice 3'Ou will find 

 3-ou can do it without any fuss or bother, but be 

 sure and close your ring neatly so that the points 

 do not overlap. It is well to have a fixed rule 

 which leg 3'OU put the ring on where the sexes are 

 much alike. I put it on the left leg of my hens, 

 the right of the cocks. 



Before you arrange 3'our aviaries for the nesting 

 season, think out carefully which birds to put 

 together, as if you are to have an)' success your 

 two pairs must be friendly to each other If you 



