Wetar pigeon

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Wetar pigeon
Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Pigeon birds (Columbiformes)
Family : Pigeons (Columbidae)
Genre : Indo-Pacific earth pigeons ( Alopecoenas )
Type : Wetar pigeon
Scientific name
Alopecoenas hoedtii
( Schlegel , 1871)

The Wetar pigeon ( Alopecoenas hoedtii , syn .: Gallicolumba hoedtii ) is a species of pigeon from the genus of the Indo-Pacific earth pigeons (Alopecoenas). It is endemic to the Wallacea region on the Lesser Sunda Islands of Timor and Wetar . In 2005, a living specimen was photographed for the first time in East Timor . It came from the region around Betano . Before that, there were only confirmed sightings at three locations in West Timor and around 20 bellows from the early 19th century, of which it was not known where the birds were hunted.

description

This species reaches a size of 27 cm. The head of the male is colored light blue-gray. The throat is gray-white. The color of the back of the neck is reddish brown, towards the neck it becomes pale and turns into a pale creamy white on the chest, which contrasts strongly with a black-colored belly. A shiny purple band runs from the chest to the shoulder. The underside is chestnut colored. The females have a rather uniform coloring. Their head, neck and chest are light rust-brown to chestnut brown in color and the underside and belly are olive-brown.

Way of life

Little is known about their way of life. The wetar pigeon inhabits monsoon forests in the valleys and possibly wooded regions at an altitude of up to 950  m . Their habitat is characterized by high annual rainfall. It is believed to be partially nomadic in the bamboo. The birds that were observed in East Timor in 2005 were only in the gallery forest . Their breeding area is presumably located in damp forests with running waters. They live very solitary and look for food on the ground like their fellow species. Judging by their calls, they evidently brood in the canopy. The breeding season is apparently in the dry season.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Birdlife factsheet - Wetar Ground-dove ( English )

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