Pheasant Pigeon
Otidiphaps nobilis
A large ground pigeon of foothill and lower montane forest. Yellow legs, red bill, black head, underparts and tail with chestnut wings and back. Some races have a crest or pale patch on the back of the neck, and rump with a purple or green sheen. Forages on the forest floor while constantly wagging its tail. Appears more like a game bird than a pigeon, but the combination of black and chestnut make it unmistakeable. Call, an introductory note followed by a descending mournful whistle “pu-wiuuuuuu!”.
Identification
The pheasant pigeon resembles a pheasant in external morphology, particularly in its laterally compressed tail and rounded wings. They have glossy black heads, undersides, rears and lower backs, and short rounded brown wings, and a white, green, grey, or black nape depending on the subspecies. No galliform birds occur in New Guinea, and the pheasant pigeon has filled the ecological niche of a partridge or small pheasant (while the larger Goura crowned pigeons have a lifestyle similar to larger pheasants, grouse or turkeys). It is a highly secretive species, feeding on seeds and fallen fruits. It nests on the ground below trees and bushes, laying one egg that it incubates for around four weeks. Both adults incubate and look after the young, feeding regurgitated crop milk to their young (a common practice for most pigeons).<p>They have a range of calls including a drilling-like sound, a typical pigeon cooing call and a loud "wu-huwoooooa" call that rises and falls in pitch before trailing off at the end.<p>They are found in rainforest habitats, eating fallen fruits and seeds, in the Aru Islands. As they avoid human settlements, the little that is known about their behavior comes from observation at zoos.
Taxonomy
The genus name makes reference to its similarities to the bustard family (Otidae). Its common name reflects its adaptation to living on the forest floor in the fashion of a South East Asian pheasant.<p>Commonly, there are four subspecies recognized that differ primarily in the presence or absence of a small crest and in the colour of the nape:<p>Some authors, however, recognize the four subspecies as four different species, a classification scheme followed by the IUCN.
- Scientific name
- Otidiphaps nobilis
- Authority
- Gould, 1870
- Order
- Columbiformes
- Family
- Columbidae
- Genus
- Otidiphaps
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
It is believed that the species is slowly declining due to deforestation of their habitats from pressure for logging and agricultural space. Because it is tied to primary forests, and is unique within the pigeon family, it is considered a genus that requires further investigation and monitoring. The green-naped pheasant pigeon (nominate subspecies) and the grey-naped pheasant pigeon are not considered threatened, but the black-naped pheasant pigeon is considered critically endangered and the white-naped pheasant pigeon is vulnerable. The black-naped pheasant pigeon was for a long time known to science only from the type specimen collected in 1882, and for the ensuing 140 years thought to be extinct, but was then captured with a trail camera in late 2022 by researchers on Fergusson Island.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
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