Red-capped fruit pigeon
| Red-capped fruit pigeon | ||||||||||
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Red-capped fruit pigeon |
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| Ptilinopus pulchellus | ||||||||||
| ( Temminck , 1835) |
The red-capped fruit pigeon ( Ptilinopus pulchellus ), also known as the beautiful downy pigeon, is a species of pigeon birds. It occurs in two subspecies in Southeast Asia. With its red head cap and bright yellow belly it is one of the particularly colorful fruit pigeons .
Appearance
The red cap fruit pigeon reaches a body length of 19 centimeters. It is significantly smaller than a laughing dove. They are compact in shape and weigh between 70 and 80 grams. It is one of the smallest fruit pigeons. There is no noticeable gender dimorphism.
The crimson-red head cap is striking, but it is also found in a similar form in other downy pigeons such as the purple cap , pink cap and red-bellied fruit pigeon . The throat of the red cap pigeon is white. The neck and chest are blue-gray. The breast feathers are slightly forked. The bright yellow belly is sharply set off from the gray chest. In the males, a faded, crimson stripe separates the abdominal plumage from the chest plumage. In the females this band is a little more dull. The under tail-coverts are orange. The top of the body of the red-capped fruit pigeon is deep dark green and shimmers bronze. The beak is horn-colored. The iris is orange with yellowish circles under the eyes. The feet are bright red.
Spread and behavior
Red cap fruit pigeons are found on the Raja Ampat Islands and New Guinea . The species inhabits forests in the lowlands. There are mostly tree-dwelling pigeons. The clutch consists of only one egg. They feed on berries and small fruits. According to an investigation, the fruits eaten include those of Tristiropsis canarioides . However, they are in a food competition with the larger black-collar fruit pigeons ( Ducula mullerii ) and cannot assert themselves against them. The fruits of the various Endiandra species also play a small role in the food spectrum . The fruits of Gymnacranthera paniculata as well as Polyalthia and Livistona species also play a role. They even eat pepper berries. Although red cap fruit pigeons are not large pigeons, they can swallow fruit two centimeters in diameter.
supporting documents
literature
- HJ Frith, FHJC Rome & TO Wolfe: Food of fruit-pigeons in New Guinea. Emu, 76, 2, pp. 49-58, 1976.
- Theo Pagel , Bernd Marcordes: Exotic soft-eaters . Eugen Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart 2011, ISBN 978-3-8001-5192-9 .
- Gerhard Rösler: The wild pigeons of the earth - free life, keeping and breeding , Verlag M. & H. Schaper, Alfeld-Hannover 1996, ISBN 3-7944-0184-0 .
- R. and C. Zenker: Erstzucht: Rotkappenfruchttaube (Ptilinopus pulchellus) , VZE Vogelwelt, 50th year, 2005, issue 1, page 16ff.
- Christian Zenker: The Red Cap fruit pigeon - a gem in the aviaries of fruit pigeon breeders , Gefiederte Welt, Volume 137, 2013, Issue 2, page 22f.
Web links
- Ptilinopus pulchellus inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013.1. Listed by: BirdLife International, 2012. Retrieved October 31, 2013.