COLUMBA GELASTIS. 201 



Dove has spread along the shores of the Pacific Ocean 

 to Dauria, and in larger numbers eastward to the 

 Stanowvi Mountains and to the coasts of the Ochotsk 

 Sea, (according to Middendorff,) to the neighbouring 

 country of the Amoor, and (according to Temminck) 

 to Japan, where it assumes its largest form, and has 

 the same variety of colours which have been described 

 in C. gelastis. "In the Amoor I found C. gelastis very 

 common, as well at the mouths of the rivers as also 

 further outwards, and on the Ussuri. It is also found, 

 according to the testimony of the natives, on the 

 Island of Sachalin. On the Amoor it remains in the 

 hazel woods, as well as among evergreens and willow 

 bushes on the islands, and, as far as I have been 

 able to observe, in the neighbourhood of water. I 

 have often seen them a short distance from the river, 

 on the level sand and pebbles, between light willow 

 branches, sitting in pairs, or in small companies of 

 four to six. At first I thought they repaired to 

 such places only to drink or pick up small stones 

 and coarse grains of sand, but the specimens which I 

 shot shew me that they find their food there as well. 

 I found the crop filled with Phnjgane, which is found 

 abundantly, and of various kinds on the Amoor. I 

 am not aware that this has ever been observed as 

 the food of our Turtle Doves in Europe. 



"Quite early in the spring this Turtle Dove appears 

 on the Amoor. At the Nikolajev Posten I found 

 them in the spring of 1855, the end of April; and 

 it also appeared at the mouth of the river about 

 the 8th. (20th.) of May, when the bushes were 

 covered with ice, and there was still much snow in 

 the forest. 



"The moulting begins among the old birds in the 



VOL. III. 2 E 



