Streptopelia chin^nsis tigritm (Tefnni. and Knip) 
M a lay name : — Tekukor- 
Description: — As in the case of its small relative, the 
barred ground- dove, the plumage of both male and female 
is similar in the spotted dove. 
The head and underparts are pink slightly shaded with 
pale- grey on the top of the head and ver>^ pale or whitish on 
the abdomen. A broad black ring with profuse white spots 
runs across the nape» but the ring is incomplete and does 
meet on the front of the neck. The upper parts and wings are 
brown with some thin bii0 bars and darker spots. The edge 
of the wing is pale lilac-grey and the outer tail feathers are 
broadly tipped wJth white. 
The irides are yellow or orange sometimes with a pink 
tinge, the bill black and the feet dull red. 
The length is between ii and 12 inches and the wing 
measures about 5 J inches. 
Distribuiion : — The range of this dove extends from 
Burma, through the Malay Peninsula and then east to Timor 
and the Mohiccas. The bird found in India is somewhat 
different from the Malayan bird but is clearly only its 
geographical representative and not a distinct species. India 
could therefore very fairly be added to the range as defined 
above. In the Malay Peninsula it is a common bird. 
Siatus in Singapore Singapore the spotted dove is 
abundant and seems to be more numerous than its smaller 
relative the barred ground-dove. It frequents similar 
situations to that species and is often seen about the town 
gardens. In the centre of the town it may be noticed sitting 
on the roofs of houses or sometimes walking about the roads 
in a very domesticated manner. It is very probable that these 
exceptionally tame birds have in some cases escaped from 
cages, but the species certainly occurs in a thoroughly wild 
state in Singapore and it is difficult to distinguish between 
truly feral and escaped examples. Large numbers are 
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RAFFLES LIBRARY 
