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THE CAROLINA TURTLE-DOVE. 



-/-Ectopistes carolinensis, Linn. 

 PLATE CCLXXXVL— Males and Females. 



I have tried, kind reader, to give you a faithful representation of two as 

 gentle pairs of Turtles as ever cooed their loves in the green woods. I have 

 placed them on a branch of Stuartia, which you see ornamented with a 

 profusion of white blossoms, emblematic of purity and chastity. 



Look at the female, as she assiduously sits on her eggs, embosomed 

 among the thick foliage, receiving food from the bill of her mate, and 

 listening with delight to his assurances of devoted affection. Nothing is 

 wanting to render the moment as happy as could be desired by any couple 

 on a similar occasion. 



On the branch above, a love scene is just commencing. The female, still 

 coy and undetermined, seems doubtful of the truth of her lover, and virgin- 

 like resolves to put his sincerity to the test, by delaying the gratification of 

 his wishes. She has reached the extremity of the branch, her wings and 

 tail are already opening, and she will fly off to some more sequestered spot, 

 where, if her lover should follow her with the same assiduous devotion, they 

 will doubtless become as blessed as the pair beneath them. 



The Dove announces the approach of spring. Nay, she does more: — she 

 forces us to forget the chilling blasts of winter, by the soft and melancholy 

 sound of her cooing. Her heart is already so warmed and so swelled by the 

 ardour of her passion, that it feels as ready to expand as the buds on the 

 trees are, under the genial influence of returning heat. 



The flight of this bird is extremely rapid, and of long duration. When- 

 ever it starts from a tree or the ground, on being unexpectedly approached, 

 its wings produce a whistling noise, heard at a considerable distance. On 

 such occasions, it frequently makes several curious windings through the 

 air, as if to prove its capability of efficient flight. It seldom rises far above 

 the trees, and as seldom passes through dense woods or forests, but prefers 

 following their margins, or flying about the fences and fields. Yet, during 

 spring, and particularly whilst the female is sitting on her eggs, the male 

 rises as if about to ascend to a great height in the air, flapping his wings, but 

 all of a sudden comes downwards again, describing a large circle, and sailing 

 smoothly with wings and tail expanded, until in this manner he alights on 



