May, 1909 
THE MOURNING DOVE IN CAPTIVITY 
85 
the head. He would then give a very short coo, gently shaking the wings mean- 
while. It seemed to amount to just one note of the many given in the usual call. 
The females seemed very gentle and loving to their mates. The two males, how- 
ever, were very savage, carrying on a running fight with each other most of the 
time, altho sometimes standing their ground. In their blind jealousy they would 
at times attack the innocent Barbary Turtle Doves. 
The pair which nested on top of the box in the peach tree were unfortunate, 
for on June 28 it was found that one egg had rolled off, and that the other was 
deserted. At that date it was found that they had started a nest in the lower part 
of the box which was covered over and had but one side open; no eggs had as yet 
been laid. Again the male carried all of the sticks and straws for the nest. In the 
morning the pair nesting on the shingle w r ere found to have one egg; later in the 
day they had two. 
On July 12, the pair nesting on the shingle hatcht a young one. By July 14 
the second young bird had hatcht. On that date, however, the cock bird died. 
For a day or two before, I noticed that its excrement was green in color, while the 
bird stayed on the ground and appeared very inactive. 
At that date, July 14, I did not know whether the eggs of my other pair had 
hatcht or not, as the parents sat very close, the female doing most of the incubat- 
ing and the male relieving her for three or four hours in the middle of the day. 
On the evening of July 15, I found one of the young of the pair nesting on the 
shingle dead. It was lying on the roof of a nearby shed, where it had evidently 
been carried by the mother, probably becoming attacht to her feathers. 
On July 16 at least one egg belonging to the pair nesting in the box had 
hatcht, as I found the shell on the ground. On the 22nd I found a young bird dead 
in this nest; the other bird was in good condition and growing rapidly. 
On the evening of July 25, when I approach! the nest on the shingle, the 
young bird flew away in alarm, striking the wire some twenty feet away. This 
bird spent either thirteen or eleven days in the nest. The following morning it 
left the nest without being disturbed and flew to the roof of the shed. On July 28 
the young bird of the pair nesting in the box left the nest, having spent only twelve 
days in the nest. 
On July 31 the hen having the nest on the shingle laid an egg, which I found 
broken the next day. She had been trying to steal the remaining cock bird from 
his mate. He seemed more attacht to her than to his mate. 
On August 1 the female nesting in the tree laid an egg; this was just four days 
after her young one had flown. On August 2 the hen nesting on the shingle laid 
her second egg, which she deserted, however. 
On August 14 the pair nesting in the box hatcht an egg. The other proved 
infertile. The young one developed in the usual time, twelve days. This 
seemed to close the breeding season; the male cooed little if any after this date, 
and all of his love and fondness for the two females disappeared. 
For a few days after the young left the nests the females were very zealous in 
protecting them, attacking each other and any harmless turtle dove which came too 
close. 
It was interesting to see how angry the hen nesting in the box became when 
she found that the widow hen was trying to steal her mate. She gave the widow 
one or two beatings; this appeared to cure her mate of his infatuation, for he paid 
no more attention to the widow. They were almost human in their jealousies! 
This species seems to be one which could be easily domesticated in this coun- 
try, if a little trouble were taken with it. 
Alameda , California. 
