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 youny bird J had died quite carly; it 
appeared to need its parents some time after it was 
fully feathered.’’ I am afraid these doves are toc 
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 hen has never been so fine a bird; her colour- 
ing is much 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 slightly 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 they were on in their own land was cross- 
ing a lake when a sudden squall came on, and I 
believe the boat overturned, and out of a very 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 could 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 
