Subfamily COLUMBINAE. 



In his family Golwmbidae Salvadori includes but three subfamilies 

 — Golumbinae, Macropygiinae, and Ectopistinae. The last of these three 

 has no representative in Asia, and consists of a single genus and species — 

 Ectopistes migratorius, the Passenger-Pigeon of North America. 



Of the other two subfamilies, the Macropygiinae will be dealt with 

 in detail later on. Here it will suffice to say that, agreeing with Blanford 

 that the birds of the genus are nearer the true Doves than the Pigeons, 

 I place them after these latter birds in order of classification, though 

 uniting them all under the one subfamily Columbinae together with 

 the former. 



The difference between the Pigeons and Doves of this group are, 

 as pointed out by Blanford, only superficial, and there are no 

 structural characteristics by which they can be divided : they aU have 

 twelve tail-feathers, and aU have the ambiens muscle, intestinal caeca, 

 and oil-gland. 



The feet and legs are more adapted for walking about on the earth 

 than are the arboreal Pigeons hitherto dealt with, but there is a 

 considerable amount of difference in this respect between the various 

 genera of the Columbinae, some being far more terrestrial in their habits 

 than others. 



The subfamily, according to the classification adopted, contains 

 seven genera of Pigeons and Doves. The former includes the genera 

 Columba (Eock-Pigeons), Dendrotreron, Palumbus, and Alsocomus 

 (Wood-Pigeons), and the latter includes Streptopelia and Oenopopdia 

 (True Doves) and Macropygia (Cuckoo-Doves). 



Blanford's key to the genera of this subfamily, given in the 

 Avifauna of British India, is very simple, and founded on characteristics 

 very easy for the sportsman and field-naturahst to follow, and I 

 therefore adopt it as it stands. 



