Red-billed olive pigeon

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Red-billed olive pigeon
Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Pigeon birds (Columbiformes)
Family : Pigeons (Columbidae)
Genre : Field pigeons ( Columba )
Type : Red-billed olive pigeon
Scientific name
Columba sjostedti
Reichenow , 1901

The red-billed olive pigeon ( Columba sjostedti ), also known as the Cameroon olive pigeon , is a species of pigeon birds. It occurs exclusively in western sub-Saharan Africa .

The population of the red-billed olive pigeon was classified in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in 2016 as “ Least Concern (LC) ” = “not endangered”.

features

The red-billed olive pigeon reaches a body length of up to 37 centimeters and is a compactly built pigeon with dark body plumage, which is similar to the olive pigeon . The gender dimorphism is only minimally pronounced.

The forehead, crown, neck and face of the adult red-billed olive pigeons are blue-gray. The back and the sides of the neck are chestnut brown, the individual feathers have white tips, creating a striped pattern. The mantle and the wing covers are dark maroon, the feathers of the inner wing covers are narrowly lined with white. The remaining elytra are dark blue-gray with white feather edges. The arm wings are black-gray, the hand wings are dark gray with lighter outer flags. The upper tail covers and the control feathers are dark slate gray. The chin and throat are blue-gray like the head, on the front breast the color changes first to a light gray-violet and then to a dark chestnut brown on the lower breast. The rest of the underside of the body is also dark chestnut brown, while the coverts under the tail are dark blue-gray. The iris is yellowish white. The beak is yellow with a dark red base.

Young birds have a brownish body plumage, the feathers on the wing covers are rusty brown, isabel colored or lined with white depending on age. The center of the chest and the belly are spotted white.

Distribution area and habitat

The red-billed olive pigeon has a comparatively small distribution area and occurs in eastern Nigeria on the Obudu and Mambilla plateau . In western Cameroon it occurs in the high areas of the Cameroon Mountain and the Oku , a mountain range in the Bamenda highlands . It is relatively common in this region.

On the Cameroon Mountain, she lives in mountain forests at altitudes between 1000 and 2500 meters. There it is mainly observed in forest regions that are dominated by tree ferns . On the Obudu Plateau, it is most common at around 1,800 meters above sea level.

Way of life

The red-billed olive pigeon is basically a shy pigeon that lives mostly solitary or can be found in small groups in the dense mountain forest. Like other forest pigeons, it also looks for food in secondary forests and along forest edges. It lives mainly on fruits and seeds and occasionally covers longer distances to get to their food grounds. According to the current state of knowledge, however, it seems to be a stationary bird. The reproduction has not yet been conclusively investigated. According to the current state of knowledge, it builds its nests exclusively in trees. She lays a single white egg. Nothing is known about the breeding season and the duration of the nestling period.

Dedication names

The specific epithet sjostedti honors Yngve Sjöstedt (1866–1948), a Swedish professor of zoology and entomology . Sjöstedt was sent on a two-year research trip to Cameroon by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in 1890 . When he returned home, he had an important collection in his luggage, which was housed in the Natural History Museum and the Zoological Institute of Uppsala University. The trip was also followed by numerous scientific publications. In 1905 he embarked on his second expedition to Africa, which lasted about a year and mainly focused on the area around Kilimanjaro . From this trip he brought home 4,300 different animal species (around 1,300 of which were previously unknown). The results were published in 1910 in the 3-volume German-language work Scientific Results of the Swedish Zoological Expedition to Kilimandjaro, Meru and the surrounding Massai Steppes of German East Africa 1905-1906 . In addition to the red-billed olive pigeon, the magnificent pygmy owl ( Glaucidium sjostedti ) is also named in his honor.

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: Pigeons - The types 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

Single receipts

  1. ↑ Rösler: The wild pigeons of the earth , p. 90.
  2. ↑ Columbus sjostedti in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2016 Posted by: BirdLife International, 2016. Retrieved on October 10, 2017th
  3. ↑ a b c Gibbs, Barnes and Cox: Pigeons and Doves. P. 193.
  4. ↑ Gibbs, Barnes and Cox: Pigeons and Doves. P. 194.
  5. ↑ Bo Beolens, Michael Watkins: Whose Bird? Men and Women Commemorated in the Common Names of Birds . Christopher Helm, London 2003, ISBN 0-7136-6647-1 , pp. 205 .