120 WILD SPORTS OF THE HIGHLANDS. [cHtar. xv. 
perfectly tame. It remained with its foster parents, flying in 
and out of their house, and coming with them to be fed at the 
windows. After it had grown up, and the cares of a new nest 
made the old birds drive it out of their company, the wood-pigeon 
became still tamer, always coming at breakfast-time or whenever 
he was called to the window-sill, where he would remain as long 
as he was noticed, cooing and strutting up and down as if to 
challenge attention to his beautiful plumage. 
However, like all pets, this poor bird came to an untimely end, 
being struck down and killed by a hen-harrier. I never on any 
other occasion saw a wood-pigeon remain perfectly tame, if left 
at liberty ; and if they are entirely confined, they seldom acquire 
their full beauty of feather. The bird seems to have a natural 
shyness and wildness which prevent its ever becoming domesti- 
cated like the common blue rock-pigeon. 
It is very difficult to approach wood-pigeons when feeding in 
the fields. They keep in the most open and exposed places, and 
allow no enemy to come near them. It is amusing to watch a 
large flock of these birds while searching the ground for grain. 
They walk in a compact body, and in order that all may fare 
alike, the hindmost rank every now and then fly over the heads 
of their companions to the front, where they keep the best place 
for a minute or two, till those now in the rear take their place in 
the same manner. They keep up this kind of fair play during 
the whole time of feeding. Almost every kind of seed is eaten 
by them, and the farmers accuse them of destroying their turnips 
in severe snow and frost. They feed also on fruit of all kinds, 
both the wild berries, such as mountain-ash, ivy, &c., and also 
upon almost all garden fruits that are not too large to be swal- 
lowed. Numbers of them come every evening to my cherry- 
trees, where they fearlessly swallow as many cherries as they can 
hold, although the gardener may be at work close at hand. 
Strawberries also are occasionally laid waste by them; and in 
the winter and early spring they devour the young cabbage and 
lettuce-plants. Where acorns are plentiful, the wood-pigeons 
seem to prefer them to anything else; and the quantity they 
manage to stow away in their crop is perfectly astonishing. 
There are many months of the year, however, during which 
they are compelled, zolens volens. to feed wholly on the seeds of 
