Peaceful Dove
Geopelia placida
Tiny gray dove with heavy barring on neck and chest. It has a pale blue eyering. The back and folded wings are covered in tiny black crescents. Tail is not as long and pointed as Diamond Dove. When disturbed it tends to fly up and perch on a nearby open branch. Voice is a repeated slurred 3-note phrase (low-high-low).
Identification
The bird is a relatively small pigeon and varies in length from 19 to 21 centimetres (7.6 to 8.4 inches). The peaceful dove has a pink-grey breast with chequered grey-brown wings. Thin striations of black appear around the neck and nape area and descend down the back. The eye is greyish-white and a blue-grey ring surrounds the eye that tapers off and joins the beak/cere. The juveniles are paler and less striated. They also have a duller eye ring. The nape is similar to that of the bar-shouldered dove in that the nape feathers are striated but differs in that the bar-shouldered dove does not have striated throat feathers like the peaceful dove. Furthermore, the nape feathers are grey-brown in colour compared to the vivid copper colour seen with bar-shouldered doves.<p>Calls of the peaceful dove are high-pitched "doodle-doo", "co-co-coo" and "croorrr!".
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Geopelia placida
- Authority
- Gould, 1844
- Order
- Columbiformes
- Family
- Columbidae
- Genus
- Geopelia
Range and habitat
They can be found all over Australia except Tasmania, southern Victoria and south western Australia . Unfortunately, the doves' range is reducing due to competition with the introduced spotted turtle dove. In New Guinea they are mainly found in the south of the island but also occur at a few sites in the north and on the Aru Islands.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The peaceful dove is found in pairs, groups and flocks. They feed off the ground and are found commonly in streets and gardens. They also are found in scrublands, woodlands, watercourses, railyards and on the edge of rainforests. When not found on the ground feeding, they can be found in trees roosting.<p>The doves fly in a rapid, undulating motion. The wings make a flushing "frrr" noise when the birds are in flight.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Black-headed Tanager
Stilpnia cyanoptera
Small bird of foothill forests. Males have a pale buffy body with black head, wings, and tail; females are much more drab, with a grayish-green head, pale bluish-green back, and yellowish underparts. In good light, both sexes show blue in flight feathers. Found in foothill forests and edge habitats, dry valleys, and in humid forest around the bases of the tepuis. Usually observed at fruiting trees, often in pairs or small family groups, from lower levels into canopy. Calls are indistinct chips and twitters. Plumage pattern of male is distinctive; females are more confusing but are seldom seen without males, facilitating identification; note contrasting gray head and (at close range) blue in wings.
Gray-necked Bunting
Emberiza buchanani
Medium-sized slender bunting with a relatively long bill. Distinctive; gray head, pale eye-ring, yellow “moustache” and warm underparts that range in color from buffy to rusty-red. Found in dry, rocky habitats such as mountainsides and arid plains. Song is a brief series of high ascending notes, typically ending with a final buzzy burst.
Speckle-breasted Antpitta
Cryptopezus nattereri
Small plump bird with a short tail, long legs, and large eyes. Very secretive and hard to spot; walks quietly on the ground of lowland humid and montane forests with a dense understory. Olive-brown above and spotted below with a pale throat. The song is a series of whistled notes increasing in volume towards the end.
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