Red mirror pigeon
| Red mirror pigeon | ||||||||||
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Red-mirrored pigeon ( Petrophassus rufipennis ) |
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| Petrophassus rufipennis | ||||||||||
| Collett , 1898 |
The Chestnut Quilled Rock Pigeon ( Petrophassus rufipennis ), also Redwing stone pigeon called, is a type of pigeon birds. It is only native to a small area in Australia.
Appearance
The red mirror pigeon reaches a body length between 28 and 31 centimeters. In appearance it is very similar to the white mirror pigeon , which belongs to the same genus. There are also similarities to the bronze winged doves , a genus that is also native to Australia.
The plumage of the red mirror pigeon is predominantly dark olive brown. The feathers on the head, neck, back and chest have gray spots and are broadly lined with dark brown. This creates a scale-like pattern. The wings of the hand and the large elytra are deep dark brown. The beak is dark gray. The iris is brown.
Spread and behavior
The red mirror pigeon is an endemic species of Australia. It occurs only in the west of Arnhem Land . Their distribution area extends there from the Katherine Gorge in the south to Oenpelli in the north. The red mirror pigeon is a habitat specialist that occurs only in the vicinity of stone fields, rocky and rugged terrain, rocky gorges and sandstone plateaus. She uses terrain near which there are eucalyptus savannas with some undergrowth and bushes. It is locally common within its limited range.
Outside of the reproductive period it usually stays in small groups of four to seven individuals. Most of the day it spends most of the day looking for seeds in rocky terrain. The food spectrum includes in particular acacia seeds as well as the seeds of various grasses and legumes. It shows the greatest activity in the early morning and late evening. During the heat of the day, it is often found in crevices or in the shade of large boulders. Their breeding time is not exactly known. Nests were found in June, July and October. The nest is unusually large and is built in the shade of overhanging rocks or in a crevice. The clutch consists of two eggs. The breeding season is 15 to 19 days. The young are fledged after 21 days.
supporting documents
Individual evidence
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 .
- 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 .
