36 
Breeding of the Tied Ground Dove. 
congenial weather, and I did not turn the pair, which Mr. 
Sutcliffe kindly .presented me with, outside, until the end of the 
following March. 
These Doves spend most of their time squatting- on the 
ground, usually singly, and almost invarialily under the shelter 
of low bushes; occasionally they perch on a low branch, but 
much prefer the earth, even when it is cold and wet; they, 
however, always choose a high branch, under shelter, on which 
to perch for the night. Their legs are long, and their walk 
is leather stately, and after every few steps they stop to give 
a quick upward flirt of their hind quarters. They run with 
ease and rapidity. Like most pigeons, these Doves are fond 
of hemp, but what is very remarkable is their liking for 
" live food "; gentles are eaten like seeds, earth worms — even 
large ones — they consider a delicacy, and are simply ravenous 
for meal-worms; fruit, also (especially banana) forms a con- 
siderable portion of their diet. 
Their cooing, is a most depressing and mournful moan, 
varied with a kind of low grunt, when they are courting. I 
have never seen the male make a display to his mate; he 
simply walks about in her vicinity and makes the most of 
his superior size. They are hardy birds, and able to with- 
stand the rigour of our English winter. 
During the 'summer of 1910 — except for a small period 
of courtship, my birds never appeared likely to nest, and 
I had very little hope that they would do so this year. In the 
late part of June, however, there were signs oi unusual act- 
ivity; the cock was continually cooing to the hen, and they 
were both taking a deep interest in the various low bushes 
in the aviary. Later I saw the hen crouched in the fork of 
an ivy -covered cherry tree, and the cock standing on her 
back with a stick in his bill; this he put down at her side 
and then repeated the performance, the hen arranging the 
sticks to her own satisfaction. This nest, when completed 
was the finest specimen of Dove architecture I have yet seen. 
The sides were raised, and made quite a deep egg-cavity, which 
was very neatly lined with dead leaves. The first egg was 
laid on July 2nd, and I was very much surprised at its 
depth of colour. I had expected from Gosse's description to 
find a tinted egg, but the colour of this one was as deep as the 
