In the Neighbourhood of Salisbury. 



159 



This bird in winter at times assembles in vast flocks, and then is 

 the time that, if not watched, it is likely to do considerable damage, 

 though not so much, I think, as is generally supposed, It feeds at 

 such times voraciously on turnip-greens, though not on the turnips 

 themselves, unless they find perchance an unsound root, into which 

 they may be induced to insert their bill. But as an example of the 

 mischief they will at times do, I can quote an instance from my 

 own parish, in which a farmer having planted a field with very 

 promising young cabbage plants, which had cost him fifteen guineas, 

 had the pleasure one fine morning of finding that the entire plant 

 had disappeared ; a large flock of some thousand pigeons or more 

 having settled down upon them, and simply cleared away every 

 vestige of them. This was certainly rather provoking, but the 

 question is, knowing well, as he did, that this large flock was about, 

 ought he not to have kept a better look-out, until they had left the 

 neighbourhood ? Most certain it is, however, that although now 

 and then they do such mischief as this, or thresh considerably a 

 piece of laid corn, or lay a heavyish tax on an over-ripe field of peas, 

 yet they do incalculable good at other times of the year, from the 

 quantity of noxious seeds they consume, such as the charlock, dock, 

 and rag- weed. Thus Mr. Stevenson, in his (c Birds of Norfolk," 

 mentions a quotation from Mr. St. John to this effect: — "Although," 

 says he, " There is a great extent of new-sown wheat (Nov. 23rd) 

 in every direction, I shoot Wood Pigeons with their crops full of the 

 seed of the dock, and without a single grain of corn. They also 

 have in their crops a great deal of the rag-weed, and small potatoes 

 as large as marbles." 



I remember once myself taking out of the crop of a Woodpigeon 

 I had just shot, twelve large acorns, each a good inch in length, 

 forming a veritable handful, which you would scarcely have thought 

 the bird's crop could have held, though from the pace the bird was 

 flying when I killed it you would not have gathered it was in any 

 way incommoded by its meal. Talking of the flight of this bird, 

 I once noticed a manoeuvre on their part I could not at the time 

 account for. In the autumn of 1876 I was standing talking to one 

 of my parishioners when we were both startled by hearing a sudden 



