THE EASTERN RUFOUS TURTLE-DOVE. 489 



Nestling. — (Not examined.) 



Juvenile. — Upper-parts much as adult but paler and browner, 

 feathers of head and neck with very narrow rufous tips and those of 

 mantle and scapulars with narrower and more buff (less rufous) tips 

 than in adult ; no neck-patches but feathers in this region usually 

 greyish with brown centres ; back and rump duller and browner 

 than in adult and feathers very narrowly tipped ashy ; feathers of 

 breast mostly dull grey, narrowly tipped buff-vinaceous ; tail- 

 feathers as adult but central feathers browner and tips usually 

 tinged brown ; primaries edged and tipped rufous and grey edges 

 and tips of secondaries and outer wing-coverts often tinged brown ; 

 rest of wing-coverts tipped rufous -buff ; primary-coverts and 

 feathers along edge of wing tipped rufous. 



First winter. — Like adult but sometimes juvenile outer primary 

 and primary-covert with rufous tip appear to be retained. The 

 juvenile plumage is otherwise completely moulted Sept .-Jan. (one 

 moulting Mar.). 



Measurements and structure. — $ wing 185-200 mm., tail 108- 

 125, tarsus 25-29, bill from feathers 16-19 (12 measured). $ wing 

 176-195. Primaries : 1st narrow, pointed and about half primary- 

 coverts, 3rd and 4th longest but 4th sometimes 1 mm. shorter, 2nd 

 1-10 shorter, 5th 9-15 shorter, 6th 22-30 shorter ; 3rd to 5th 

 emarginated outer webs. Other structure as Turtle -Dove. 



Soft parts. — Bill dark grey, basal portion dull purple ; legs and 

 feet pink ; iris reddish gold. 



Characters and allied forms. — S. o. meena (W. Central Asia, 

 Himalaya) has belly and under tail-coverts white ; S. o. agricola 

 (central India, Burmah) has nape and sides of mantle and under- 

 parts rich vinaceous. Distinguished from Turtle-Dove by larger 

 size, much darker coloration and grey (not white) tips to feathers 

 of neck-patches. 



Breeding-habits. — Breeds in bushes, clumps of bamboo, etc. 

 Nest. — Like those of other species, flimsily built of twigs. Eggs.— 

 2, white. Average of 28 eggs, 33.6x24.7. Max. : 36.5x24.6 and 

 35.4x26.1. Min. : 30.5x22.3 mm. Breeding -season. — Extends over 

 whole of spring and summer but most eggs taken in May- June. 

 Incubation. — By both sexes. 



Pood. — No definite records. 



Distribution. — England. — One. A young bird near Scarborough 

 (Yorks.) Oct. 23, 1889 (Seebohm, Proc. Zool. Soc., 1890, p. 361). 

 Distribution. — Abroad. — Manchuria, China, Corea and Japan to 

 Himalayas and central India. Casual in Denmark and Scandinavia. 

 Replaced by allied forms in south-west Siberia, Turkestan to 

 Kashmir and Nepal, Loo Choo Islands and India. 



[Note. — Five examples of the American Passenger-Pigeon, Ectopisles 

 migratorius (L.), have been recorded as shot in the British Isles ; one had 

 certainly escaped from captivity and probably also the others (Yarrell, 

 in, p. 26 ; Saunders, p. 487). The species is now extinct.] 



