94 



MY FOREIGN DOVES AND PIGEONS. 



as if the night out of doors had chilled it, but other- 

 wise it was all right. 



Next year, in May, 1908, the Black-beardeds 

 started to nest in an old wooden parrot's nest-box, 

 with a hollowed saucer-shaped bottom, fixed a foot 

 or two from the ground. The hen laid one very 

 round egg, which was broken in the nest. Fear- 

 ing the same thing would happen again if the eggs 

 were laid on the hard wood, I lined the hollow of 

 the nest-box with a wicker nest-basket and some 

 sand and heather, making it all very firm. The 

 birds seemed to like it, for they kept adding more 

 heather, and kept sitting for a few minutes, but 

 nothing came of it, although two more broken 



,eggs were found, supposed to be theirs. 



'^ The birds' former owner said of them : "They 

 laid with me on the bottom of a box hung about 

 4 feet from the ground, and employed no nesting 

 material. More than one egg was 'toe-bored,' and 

 the one young bird I had died quite early ; it 

 appeared to need its parents some time after it was 

 fully feathered." I am afraid these doves are too 

 heavy-footed to hope for much success in nesting ; 

 the eggs seem bound to be broken if laid on a 

 hard surface, especially as my hen appears to suffer 

 from a weakness in one foot. 



At the present time my two birds are in a sunny 

 aviary; they roost side by side always in the same 

 place on a very high perch, but seem to spend 

 nearly all the day on a wide wooden shelf fixed 

 low down across the front of the aviary. This 

 shelf ends in a wooden coop where their food is 

 placed, and a nest-basket sunk in a turf right at 

 the back of the inside, to induce them to breed ; 

 but I am afraid it is too late to hope for anything 

 this year. The cock did a great deal of cooing 

 earlier on, but not so much just lately. 



The Black-bearded cock is a great favourite 

 of mine, he is so dignified and self-contained; just 

 now he is in perfect plumage, like one feather. 

 The h'en has never been so fine a bird ; her colour- 

 ing is iriuch the same as the cock's, but her shape 

 is not nearly so good, nor her carriage so stately. 

 She is rather nervous, and inclined to soon get 

 frightened. 



The Zoo had some of these lovely pigeons a little 

 time ago, but I do not know if they have them still 

 or if any other specimens are at present in Eng- 

 land, though possibly there may be one here and 

 there. I do not know this dove's value, but it is 

 very rare. 



CONCLUSION. 



Besides these 40 species of doves and pigeons 

 I have kept, I have also a tiny dove in my collec- 

 tion kindly given me by a gentleman who had got 

 a pair of these birds in Arequipar in Peru. I was 

 told the name of the dove was the Francesian dove 

 (Palonita francisea). One of the pair died, the 

 other later found a home with me some five years 

 ago, and is still in fine health and perfect plumage. 

 From some cause, however (some time ago now), 

 it injured one wing and cannot fly, so it is forced 

 to spend its life on the ground. In shape this bird 

 is very like a Passerine, but slightl)' larger. Its 

 colour is a soft mouse-brown, with a bar right 

 across the wing high up, and several spots lower 

 down of rich metallic purple, very dark. The beak 

 is bright orange, like a blackbird's, for more than 

 half its length, the remaining part, the tip, being 

 black. This little bird is very active, and can run 

 very fast. 



I have also kept three other doves that came to 

 me as Malayan Ring doves. All are dead now, 

 but they were very handsome birds, something like 

 the Deceptive dove, but richer and deeper in colour. 

 I took these birds to be two hens and a cock, but 

 they never nested with me. They had rather a 

 tragic history before they landed in England, for 

 the boat the}' were on in their own land was cross- 

 ing a lake when a sudden si^all came on, and I 

 believe the boat overturned, and out of a verjf large 

 collection of birds on board only about 60 were 

 saved. 



One of my birds was unfortunately attacked by 

 a little Conure, and though not really hurt, I 

 believe the shock affected the poor thing's brain, 

 for it always seemed dazed afterwards. One of 

 the hens was very fond of mealworms ; the cock 

 did not care for them. 



So ends the story of my doves and pigeons. 

 There are many other kinds I should like to have 

 kept, and have had the chance of keeping, but 

 bird-keeping is an expensive hobby where a number 

 are kept, and so it must have its limits. Perhaps 

 if one L-oiild buy every bird one wished half the 

 charm and pleasure would be gone, and I am 

 certain that in my own case my aviaries would soon 

 become far too crowded ; so whether it is really 

 "sour grapes" or not, there are times when a stern 

 check must be laid on one's inclinations, and it is 



