Hop pigeon
| Hop pigeon | ||||||||||||
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Hop pigeon ( Gallicolumba tristigmata ) |
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| Gallicolumba tristigmata | ||||||||||||
| ( Bonaparte , 1855) |
The hop pigeon ( Gallicolumba tristigmata ) is a species of pigeon birds. It is also called the Celebes yellow-breasted earth dove . However, two other species of pigeon have very similar names: The yellow-breasted pigeon ( Gallicolumbus rufigula ) is another species of the Indo-Pacific pigeon. The Celebes binding tail fruit pigeon belongs to the genus of the large fruit pigeons ( Ducula ).
Appearance
The hop pigeon is considered the largest of all Indo-Pacific earth pigeons. It reaches a body length of 35 centimeters. It is significantly larger than a city pigeon, but its shape is somewhat more compact and long-legged. The gender dimorphism is not very pronounced. The females only have a slightly dull color.
The hop pigeon has a gray head, from which the yellow forehead stands out strikingly. The throat is light gray. The back neck as well as the coat and the back are olive brown. There is a wide violet-red band in the neck. The chest and the sides of the neck are gray and have a green-gold sheen. The underbust is tinged with yellow to orange. The belly is light brown. The beak is dark gray. The iris is dark brown. The feet are reddish.
The hops pigeon's siting call is a repeated, nasal ukuku-ku-kuku .
Spread and behavior
The hop pigeon occurs in two subspecies exclusively on Sulawesi. Their habitat seems to be exclusively primary forests. Their altitude distribution on Sulawesi ranges from the lowlands to altitudes of 1,900 meters above sea level. It is not a very common species. If it is frightened, it does not fly very far, but rather settles down very quickly on the ground and constantly seeks out thickets for cover. Their way of life is completely grounded. Their food spectrum includes seeds and fruits lying on the ground. Since it is more common locally at certain times of the year, the hop pigeon appears to be a nomadic wandering pigeon. The reproductive biology of this species is largely unexplored. Findings were mainly gathered from captive-bred hop pigeons. The male pursues the female very closely, then suddenly pauses after a full run and presents himself to the female crouching on the ground. It gets a rough trrrr . Females ready to mate signal their willingness to mate by beaking the male and encouraging him to hand over the food. This leads directly to mating.
Keeping in human care
The species is rarely imported. The first German offspring was achieved in 1983 by Alois Münster, who specializes in keeping wild pigeons.
supporting documents
literature
- David Gibbs, Eustace Barnes and John Cox: Pigeons and Doves - A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World . Pica Press, Sussex 2001, ISBN 90-74345-26-3 .
- Alois Münst and Josef Wolters: Tauben - The species of wild pigeons , 2nd expanded and revised edition, Verlag Karin Wolters, Bottrop 1999, ISBN 3-9801504-9-6 .
- Gerhard Rösler: The wild pigeons of the earth - free living, keeping and breeding . M. & H. Schaper Verlag, Alfeld-Hannover 1996, ISBN 3-7944-0184-0 .
Individual evidence
Web links
- Gallicolumba tristigmata onthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Listed by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved October 31, 2013.