Polynesian earth dove

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Polynesian earth dove
Tahitian dove front ssp. A. e. albicollis, behind nominate form A. e. erythroptera, painted by John Gerrard Keulemans

Tahitian dove front ssp. A. e. albicollis , behind nominate form A. e. erythroptera , painted by John Gerrard Keulemans

Systematics
Sub-stem : Vertebrates (vertebrata)
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Pigeon birds (Columbiformes)
Family : Pigeons (Columbidae)
Genre : Indo-Pacific earth pigeons ( Alopecoenas )
Type : Polynesian earth dove
Scientific name
Alopecoenas erythroptera
( Gmelin , 1789)

The Polynesian earth dove ( Alopecoenas erythroptera , syn .: Gallicolumba erythroptera ), also called Tahitian dove or Society Island dove , is a very rare species of pigeon birds. The species population is estimated at 100 to 200 birds and the population is highly fragmented on small wooded islets. It is now extinct on some of the islands in its original range. The reason for the decline in the population is the reenactment by introduced rats and cats . Natural disasters such as the hurricanes that occur more frequently in this region can lead to further loss of habitat and individuals. The IUCN therefore classifies this species as critically endangered .

Appearance

The Polynesian earth dove reaches a body length of almost 25 centimeters. It is a small, compactly built earth pigeon that has a pronounced sexual dimorphism. It is very similar to the Ponape earth dove . However, their gray head and stomach are lighter.

The males of the Polynesian earth dove have a white face and chest. The back of the head and the ear patches are dark gray. The rest of the plumage is black. The upper mantle and the wing coverts shimmer maroon. In females, the proportion of gray on the face and chest is greater. It is particularly noticeable that the throat is gray. They are orange-brown on the chest. The body plumage is rather gray-brown. They lack the intense maroon shine on the top of the body. Young birds are similar to females. However, many feathers in them have a reddish-brown border.

distribution and habitat

Polynesian Earth Dove painted by William Ellis

The range of the Polynesian earth pigeon are the Society Islands and the Tuamotu Archipelago . It was originally widespread here on all islands. With the introduction of rats and cats, it only occurs today on uninhabited islands and small atolls where these species have not yet settled.

It occurred on Matureivavao at least until 1987 . Between 1990 and 1991, 12 to 20 Polynesian earth pigeons were observed on two wooded islets of the Rangiroa Atoll. In 2005 a rat control campaign was carried out on one of the small islands of the Rangiroa Atoll. In 2006 nine pigeons were found on this island again. In 2003 an expedition found several pigeons on Morane, a remote island in the Tuamotu Archipelago. This doubled the known population to 100 to 120 pigeons. On the islands where it still occurs, it seems to prefer forests with a well-developed underlayer of large bushes, ferns and grasses.

behavior

Almost nothing is known about the way of life of the Polynesian pigeon. Individual Europeans, who were able to observe them more closely in the 19th century, described them as a shy, ground-dwelling pigeon that flies up like a pheasant when it is startled. Their wings generate a rumbling flight noise as an instrumental sound . Nothing is known about the reproductive biology of this species.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ BirdLife Factsheet , accessed July 3, 2009
  2. ↑ Gibbs, p. 407
  3. ↑ Rösler, p. 237
  4. ↑ Gibbs, p. 407
  5. ↑ BirdLife Factsheet , accessed July 3, 2009

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 . Verlag M. & H. Schaper, Alfeld Hannover 1996, ISBN 3-7944-0184-0 .

Web links