Turtle dove

“ In the house the turtle dove is given a small straw basket, in which it builds, for, whether reared from the nest, or taken when full grown, it pairs without difficulty, and produces young ones. It will also pair with the collared turtle. ”

“ Every sportsman must be familiar with the bird. Its magnificent bronzed metallic, green plumage renders its identification easy. The commonest dove of the Himalayan hill-stations is the Indian turtle-dove (Turtur ferago) . Its plumage is of that grey hue which is so characteristic of doves as to be called dove-colour. The turtle-dove has a conspicuous patch of black-and-white feathers on each side of the neck. ”

“ The mammæ, from which this milky liquor is produced, are situated on each side the upper part of the breast, immediately under the craw. In the female turtle dove we have met with these glands tumid with milky secretion, and we believe it common to both sexes of the dove genus. The cormorant or pelican genus possess no craw; but, to supply its place, they have a loose skin at the base of the under mandibles, capable of great distension, in which they carry fish to their young. The bustard is said to possess a bag of an astonishing size, for the purpose of retaining water ”

“ The red turtle dove occurs throughout India, but, as in the case of the other species of dove, its distribution appears to be capricious. It is a permanent resident in the United Provinces, and, possibly, in South India, although I am inclined to think that it goes north to breed. Of this I am not sure. It never does to be sure of anything connected with doves; they are most unreliable birds. ”

“ It is a large species, measuring more than a foot in length. Another species is the Palm Turtle (Turtur Senegalensis) , so called from its habit of nesting on palm-trees, when it is obliged to build at a distance from the habitations of man. It is a gregarious bird, several nests being generally found on one tree, and even, when it cannot find a palm, it will build among the thorns in multitudes. Like the common Dove, it is fond of the society of man, and is sure to make its nest among human habitations, secure in its knowledge that it will not be disturbed. ”

“ We now come to the Turtle Doves, several of which inhabit the Holy Land; but, as they are similar in habits, we will confine ourselves to the common species (Turtur auritus) , with which we are so familiar in this country. The Hebrew word which is translated as Turtle, is tôr, a term which is usually employed in connexion with the word yônâh, or Dove, thus, tôr-yônâh. The name is evidently derived from the note of the bird. ”

“ The sexual dimorphism displayed by the red turtle dove is a fact equally awkward for the Wallaceians, because the habits of this species appear to be in no way different from those of the other doves. I have seen red turtle doves feeding in company with the three other common species of Indian dove; they eat the same kind of food, build the same ramshackle nests, and lay the usual white eggs. But I will not spend time in whipping a dying horse. The poor overburdened beast which we call Natural Selection has done yeoman service ”

“ Perched upon a bough at no great height from the ground, it pours forth its soft murmurings with a delightful crescendo and diminuendo, while close at hand, upon a mere frame-work of a nest, the mate sits brooding upon her two milk-white eggs.
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Arriving in this country towards the end of April or beginning of May, the Turtle-Dove is seen only in pairs until the young are able to fly. Young and old then unite in flocks, and ten or a dozen may often be found together in the pea-fields and on the stubble, where they pick up the fallen grain. ”

“ It is practically impossible for any one but the professional ornithologist to keep pace with these changes. A poor dilettante like myself has not a look in. For example, I received by the last mail [1] the latest issue of the Avicultural Society’s Magazine and noticed in it an article on the collared turtle-dove of Burma. Wondering what this bird might be, I looked at its scientific name and found it to be Turtur decaocta. I looked this up in both Jerdon and the Fauna of British India, but could not find it; nor could I see any mention of the collared turtle-dove. ”

“ A nestful of magpie's eggs or bairns would have been a gratifying sight to my bird-hungry eyes.
One bird which is familiar in the East as well as the West deserves attention on account of its choice of haunts. I refer to the turtle dove, which is much hardier than its mild and innocent looks would seem to indicate. It may be remarked, in passing, that very few birds are found in the deep cañons and gorges leading up to the higher localities ”

“ The little white dove
Has returned to the ark with the bough;
And now the turtle-dove
Its desired mate
On the green banks has found. ”

“ A good many yearly build round Milton, and the south parts of the Forest, and even in the interior, as at Fritham and Alum Green.
Common Sandpiper. (Totanus hypoleucos, Tem.) A pair now and then remain to breed at Whitten pond, near Burley, and also at Ocknell.
Turtle Dove. (Columba turtur, Lin.) Not uncommon. Makes a slight framework of heather for a nest, which it places in a furze bush or low holly. Is extremely shy, and easily forsakes its eggs. ”

“ Turtle-doves are found in the more wooded portions of the oasis, their favourite haunts being the old spreading acacias which line the water-channels and mark the sources of the ancient wells. Although not as a rule regarded as coming into the category of game-birds, turtle-doves are by no means to be despised when one has failed to replenish the larder from ordinary sources. When disturbed in their favourite haunts, the birds fly rapidly from tree to tree, and shooting has to be both straight and quick if anything of a bag is to be made. ”

“ To an Englishman a turtle is a sea-monster, that for a brief space lies on his back and fights the air with his useless paddles in the bow-window of a provision-shop, bound eventually to Guildhall, there to feed Gog and Magog, or his worshippers, known as aldermen. For him a land-testudinate is a tortoise. When his poets and romancers speak of turtles, again, they commonly mean turtle-doves. ”

“ It depended largely upon acorns and beechnuts for food, with occasional feasts on grain and berries. The turtle or mourning dove still is quite common. The long, soft, mournful note of the male during the nesting season is known to nearly everyone in the United States. It is a smaller bird than the passenger pigeon, being about 113⁄4 inches long. The upper parts are olive grayish brown, the neck iridescent, the breast pinkish and the belly buff; the outer tail-feathers are tipped with white. They nest in isolated pairs, and two broods are produced a year. ”

“ From impatience the little birds are sure to show themselves, and if they are building they hop up and down, twist in and out of the lowest plants, with material for their nest in their beaks, and you have only to lie still and watch.
But “watching” all day long will do no good with turtle-doves. Whether building or not, they never tell you, and when they catch sight of you they fly off at once, as if they did not care where they flew to, or whether they ever came back there again. ”

“ Two or three men go out in a canoe in smooth water, when the Turtles delight to sleep on the surface, basking in the sun. No sooner is one discovered, than the ready diver plunges into the sea, and coming up silently behind the animal, suddenly seizes the hinder edge of the carapace before it awakes, and pressing down the posterior part of the body in the water, obliges the fore parts to remain upright. Thus the terrified Turtle, now thoroughly awakened, is prevented from diving until the canoe coming up, the bold fisherman and his prey are both taken on board. ”

“ No one knew what caused the newly hatched young of the great sea-turtles to crawl toward the ocean as soon as they had dug their way upward out of the sand within which their eggs are laid, but Dr. Davenport Hooker, of Yale, found that the young turtle is attracted toward the ocean by the blue color of the water. If it sees the ocean through red, yellow or green glass it does not crawl toward it, but if a piece of blue glass, or even blue paper, be placed anywhere within range of its vision the turtle at once scuttles toward it with great excitement. ”

“ The natives take large numbers of the former; indeed, from the month of November till February turtle forms their principal food. The green turtle are taken in the water by the blacks, who display great address in "turning" them; they are approached when asleep on the surface; the black slips gently from his canoe and disappears under water, and rising beneath the animal, by a sudden effort turns it on its back, and by a strong wrench to the fore flipper disables it from swimming. The fisherman is assisted by his companions in the canoe, and a line is secured to the turtle. ”

“ But at last, here in the lake, they threw him into the water, that Turtle; then he sank, his back down and belly up, like a dead animal. But he riled up the water with his paws, and then when it was all muddy he poked his head out of his shell from the water and then he cried out, “Oh ho! as for you all, your earth kills you, but as for me my land does not kill me.” Then the birds heard him, that Turtle, by the noise of his screeching, and they rushed upon him, these warriors, and they chose one that was an expert diver. ”

“ When the eggs are carefully placed in separate layers, the loose sand is laid over them, and the hole not only completely hidden but made to look exactly like the rest of the beach, so that no one could ever tell that the surface had been disturbed at all. Then the turtle goes away and leaves the hot sand to do the rest.
In course of time the young turtles, hardly bigger than a five-shilling piece, leave their shells, and make their way to the water, unless, before they are hatched, their nest has been discovered by men, or by the cougars and other wild animals, who feed greedily on them. ”

“ Numbers of splendid turtles often came ashore to deposit their eggs in the sand, and their delicious flesh afforded us many a sumptuous meal. When more than one of these creatures appeared at a time, we used to cut off their retreat to the sea, and, turning them on their backs, fasten them to a stake driven in close by the water's edge, by a cord passed through a hole in their shell. We thus had fresh turtle continually within our reach ”

“ There they lie in every variety of posture; some on their backs, with their white bellies uppermost, some suspended in midwater, some sculling gently along with a dreamy motion of the fins, and others quite active and wide awake,—a scene not unlike what the human city would present. Occasionally he will encounter a turtle selecting the choicest morsels, or a musk-rat resting on a tussuck. He may exercise his dexterity, if he sees fit, on the more distant and active fish, or fork the nearer into his boat, as potatoes out of a pot, or even take the sound sleepers with his hands. ”

“ These large turtles, which in other parts of South America are called “arraus,” or simply “tortugas,” assemble every year in large armies, from all parts of the river. Each one of these armies chooses for itself a place to breed—some sandy island, or great sand-bank. This they approach very cautiously—lying near it for some days, and reconnoitring it with only their heads above the water. They then crawl ashore at night in vast multitudes—just as the party saw them—and each turtle, with the strong crooked claws of her hind feet, digs a hole for herself in the sand. ”

“ The people go along the shore at night with lanterns and other lights, seeking the tracks which the turtle leaves in the sand, which they follow till they find the animal, which being tired with the exertion, sleeps so soundly as not to waken on their approach. Having found a turtle it is turned on its back, and without doing any more harm they go on to seek more, which are treated in the same manner. ”

“ The common fresh-water turtles have distinct toes, which are webbed and provided with long nails. They are easy and powerful swimmers, but are very helpless on land. They feed upon all kinds of aquatic worms and insects. The tortoises, or land turtles, have short clubbed feet adapted for travelling on the ground, and stout, short claws. They feed upon roots, vegetables, fruit, and small bugs and flies. Their upper shell is more rounded than that of the water turtle. They are capable of swimming, but seldom enter the water. ”

“ When the fishermen discover the Turtles basking on the surface of the water, not daring to disturb their intended prey, by making the least noise, they slip overboard one of their Remoras, secured by the long cord, and pay out the line according to their distance. The fish soon perceives the Turtle, and hastening to it, fixes itself so firmly on the floating reptile, that the fishermen can draw both together into their boat, where there is no difficulty in detaching the fish by pushing forwards its head from behind. ”

“ The moon with her silvery light now illumines the scene, and the Turtle, having landed, slowly and laboriously drags her heavy body over the sand, her "flippers" being better adapted for motion in the water than on shore. Up the slope, however, she works her way; and see how industriously she removes the sand beneath her, casting it out on either side. Layer after layer she deposits her eggs, arranging them in the most careful manner, and with her hind paddles brings the sand over them. ”