iridescent, wine-colored plumage and a remarkable stomach lined with horny spines 

 to grind off and pulpify the arillus or "mace" from the wild nutmegs on which 

 he subsists; and the equally beautiful Chili Pigeon, or ll Ruve" that flourishes 

 on red-hot capsicums. 



Of the 'wonderfully feathered little Fruit Doves much has been written; in- 

 deed it is quite impossible to describe their gorgeous coloring; they must be 

 seen to be appreciated. Male and female are quite differently feathered in all 

 the species, the male Golden Dove ( Chrysoena lutevoire ns) having an olive-yellow 

 cap fringed with yellowish, the remainder of the body being mostly clothed in a 

 covering of lovely, separated, glossy, lanceolated, golden feathers. He has a 

 yellow-green tail; while the female is greenish throughout — indeed, goes under 

 the popular name of the Green Dove. Then, there is the Grims on- capped Dove 

 ( Ftilinopus perousei ) that looks white as it flies, but is really a" remarkable 

 study in dark purple, bronze-green and white, the first and last colors predom- 

 inating. 



This beautiful dove sports a crimson cape over his shoulders and the white 

 feathers of his breast are split at their ends, the resulting points being tip- 

 ped with red. The female is less elaborately adorned but is yet extremely at- 

 tractive. Still more wonderful in its truly flamboyant attire is the far-famed, 

 though rare, Flame-coloured or Orange Dove ( Chrysoena victor ) whose flight through 

 the forest has been aptly likened to "The passage of a rocket on a dark night." 

 The male bird has a velvety, olive-coloured cap with a bright yellow border, 

 the rest of the body-covering, both above and below, being composed of closely 

 applied, hair-like feathers of a brilliant, glossy orange-red; "flame-coloured" 

 describes it more accurately. The entire plumage of the female is rich green, 

 yellowish-green on the head and throat. The writer has never seen a more im- 

 pressive study in feathered monochrome than is presented by this beautiful 

 little dove. Finally, one of the most attractive of these Columbidae is the 

 Fijian Ground Dove ( Phlogoenas stairi) intermediate in size and, perhaps, 

 beauty between the smaller doves and the larger Pigeons. The general colouration 

 of this species is dark brown with bronze and purple reflections. He has a 

 genuine "coo" aa his call note, and is still to be found in those localities 

 that are free of the mongoose. In Viti Levu some individuals still survive. 

 They have learned to avoid ground feeding as much as possible and to build on 

 the small brances of high trees to which the enemy cannot climb. A noticeable 

 character of some of these Fijian Columbidae is their "barking" notes. In the 

 deep jungle one is often startled by a succession of clear or hoarse dog-like 

 sounds, so familiar that, if one does not know their origin, they are readily 

 attributed to a lot of dogs that have strayed from home. 



As E. and I turn our faces northward towards home, and say farewell to the 

 lands and peoples whose hospitality we have so much enjoyed during the past year, 

 we cannot help thinking of the lines penned by John Kerdrick Bangs : - 



34- 



