usually called beach, plum, and some few berries of a species of
palmetto that appears to be peculiar to those keys. It is also
extensively spread in Jamaica and St'. Domingo, and is very
abundant in the'island of Porto Rico', frequenting deep woods,
and breeding on rocks, whence they are, called by some JEtock
Pigeons. They are very numerous on all the Bahama islands,,
and form an important article'* of food v?ith~ the* inhabitants,
particularly when young, being then ta tem ih great; quantities
f a n the Pocks whêré they brgpd. -On the EldridaTeys also'ffisVr
f a ie d in large societies, and the young are much sought after
by|me wreckers. They there f&ed principally on b e i ^ ^ qnd
sp e c ia lly on those rfjg&bfee call^E; swfeert-.wpod. When the &«it
of this Is ripe they.Kcome fa f and|.well flfv pU r^ Mit other fruit-s
Wp-kSmynake their È e® ’%ry bitter.
> Buffon, in accordance with hip whimsical idea of re ferring
forögffslrcciès ’to .those of Europe, considers the preset-* asf a
AbbejBiset j£Mumba Bvia, Briss.) To that b ir^S T p in
fact a lliM,’ b o tn u n form^fend plumage, and has moreover the
sa r^ fc ab itlp f breèmng in nm ^ a n d crevices of rocksrhut it is-
atjhefsame time entirely distincPPa
- The&size of the White-crowned PigeSan has been underrated by:
.amhti^T"? I.tg^Éigth is^mirteen inches ancPits extent twehty*three,
The bm ïsPfme in c h in g , carmine red at theSjbase, the-éndi-from
the nostrjls being blifflsh-wRite: the irides:are orange ye‘llów,-the
bare circle ir^un<L the dusky. ■ white, becoming rpd in the
breeding season. T ^ h e enphn: crown, * including all the jfeather|
advancin^milpn the bill is whiteyfith a tinge*of ga?eai%colour,
and is narrowly margined faith s:bl;ack, which passes Idnsensibly
into the genérahifeop slaje cojjair: on. the nape of th l heck is a
j aSIll det^^nirplish space ■ changinrato violfet% the'dfeinainder of
tb ^ te c k above, aad,q^theaspfe^^Wjwered by scale-like feathers,
l lf r ^ f t gm aw ith bluish and góldeli réfiecoms, according as .tlpè
light falls, fjrbËÉSid.es.a,Pf the head, the body above, and whole
inferior surface,'the wings and tail above and beneath, in shbrt
èJlïê whole bird without any ^eëptijm but tneipartsrdescribed, is
of a uniform deep bluish'slate-, much lighter on the belly,f more
tinged with blue 'on - the st'out-shafted rump-feathers, -somewhat
glossy and approaching to-dmownish black^on the scapulars: the
quills a r | » r e of adhisky black. The w inA are nearly -fight
inejms-^ng, reaching when^losejjl to two|tlpMsÿ)f the tail; the'
first primary is somewhat- shorter than thé- foùrth/an|®î@ second
and thffd ^ are lohge’st; fthe thirde'!is curiously * scalloped' on the
outeirweb, which is much nàrrowedfefor two ineÇesAfrom,the tip;
all,are finely edged with whitish. The t|a il'|s>.»i1.?mel^s Ioup-.
perfqptly e$en, of twelve uniform broad featfifers' .with rounded
tips.. .^Ehe Æet are carmine red, J:h^Mails|d-uskp;^ the .tarsus
measqresi^Ss -than an ^©ç^beiu^g subequal ^tQjjthè lateral ^toes,
and much snorter than ythe-,mitfafc -one-.- a
The female is perfectly similar. >lt*is oneiof this séx,,sh o tin
thé beginning of March, that is represented "in thetëplat^daÊLis
perhaps a young, or not a very old bird, fbr itwénlda. se’fem Shau
as they advance in age,yj|f se Pigeons becom|J^Q®d'ewhatMighter
coloured, the crown acquiring a U|®ch,pu4er jyhite. Thisi.mSever
we only infer from authors, Égûr plate and description being
faithfully copied from n à t u K ^
The'young are distinguiwé|i\byi duller tinls'kbndithe-;crohm if
at first,nearly uniform witWth^reugv^^ th e ir1 dark plumage,:, this
part after a time changes -to’«' gray', then grayish white, and
becomes.yduter and-fahâtoç asÂejpirH grows* ol/léc. It is proper
to remark, after what has -been said under thp\, article of the
Band-taiMd Pigeon, in“- vol. i., that the jwKit^aolom^extehds
equally over the '' whole, crpy^nT not mprè^ on one part ||ian
another ;.-thus hevefâiadmittingj of a restricted band or line, as m
that mhch lighter céRmupd bird.
H u . in.—F