BAND-TAILED PIGEON—Family Columbidæ.
312. Columba fasciata. 16 inches.
This large species may be recognized by the white crescent on the back of the neck, by the broad gray band; bordered with black at the end of tail. Back, near the neck, brownish shading into a gray nearer the tail. Head and neck of iridescent colors, very changeable in different positions. They are very abundant on the mountain ranges, sometimes in immense flocks. They feed on grain, wild berries and acorns, and are found mostly in the oak and pine woods.
Nest.—Is a rude platform of sticks, just enough to barely keep in place the single white egg (rarely two) which they lay (1.55 × 1.10).
Range.—The Rocky Mountains and westward to the Pacific, from British Columbia to Mexico.