Blue-spotted Wood-Dove
Turtur afer
Small, pale, pretty dove. Bill is red with a yellow tip. The small dark iridescent spots on the wing are blue, though this is hard to see. In flight, the wings show rufous patches, and the tail has white tips and a black band. Found in a variety of thick, moist habitats, including lush savannah, forest edge, thickets, and scrub. Song is a long, slowly accelerating series of hollow “hoo” notes. Separated from other wood-doves by its red-and-yellow bill. Generally found in moister habitats than other wood-doves.
Taxonomy
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the blue-spotted wood dove in his six volume Ornithologie based on a specimen collected in Senegal. He used the French name La tourterelle de Sénégal and the Latin Turtur senegalensis. Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the blue-spotted wood dove which he placed with all the other pigeons in the genus Columba. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Columba afra and cited Brisson's work. The specific name afer is the Latin word for "Africa". The species is now placed in the genus Turtur that was introduced in 1783 by the Dutch naturalist Pieter Boddaert. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.
- Scientific name
- Turtur afer
- Authority
- (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Order
- Columbiformes
- Family
- Columbidae
- Genus
- Turtur
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Tabora Cisticola
Cisticola angusticauda
Medium-sized, long-tailed, plain cisticola. Note the rufous cap and the white tip to the tail. The tail is slightly shorter in non-breeding plumage. Found locally in a variety of savanna habitats, including both acacia savanna and broadleaf woodland. The song is a quick, high-pitched piping. As with other cisticolas, habitat and vocalizations are important to identification. Similar to Rock-loving Cisticola, but smaller, slimmer, and not associated with rocky habitat. Somewhat like Siffling Cisticola, but has a rufous cap.
Black Bushbird
Neoctantes niger
Distinctive, chunky antbird with an upturned bill. Males are entirely black with a silvery-black bill; females are similar, but have a bright red-orange belly. Found in dense forest undergrowth, including in heliconia thickets, waterside vegetation, viny edge forest, and dense forest on nutrient poor soils. Forages singly or in pairs, and does not usually join mixed-species flocks. Its song is an easily-imitated, even-paced series of low whistles, given at a pace of about one note per second.
Pale Flycatcher
Agricola pallidus
Fairly large, long-tailed, very plain flycatcher. Note the grayish underparts and unstreaked crown. Found in moist savanna and broadleaved woodland, including miombo. Sits in the midstory for long periods, occasionally flying out to grab an insect on the wing or on the ground. Call is a dry “cheeyp”, and song is a quick, scrambled series of similar notes. Unlike Marico Flycatcher, has dusky underparts, and unlike Grayish Flycatcher, has an unstreaked crown.
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