White-headed Pigeon
Columba leucomela
A large forest pigeon with a white head and body (juveniles and females more smoky-gray), and blackish wings and tail. Red eye and eye ring, with a pale bill that has a red base. Eats tree fruits and is often seen perched on nearby power-lines. This species is found in wetter areas along the east coast of Australia.
识别特征
The white-headed pigeon draws its name from its distinctive white head, neck, breast, and belly. In males, the wings are slate grey, along with the tail. The upperparts are grey black, with a green or purple iridescence. The bill is pink to dark red, but with a yellow or white tip. The legs and feet are pink to red. Females appear similar to males, but their white coloration is less brilliant and more muddied. Juveniles are similar to females, but with a greyer head and darker gray underparts. Juveniles have greyer feet, legs, and bills, with the bill white tipped. Adults range from 38–42 cm (15–17 in) from beak to tail, and weigh around 420 g (15 oz).<p>The eye ring and legs are red and the eyes are pale orange or yellow.<p>Their call is loud and gruff sounding like "WHOO!" followed by a gruff inhalation sounding "uk" (repeated three times). Sometimes the call is a low "oom".
分类信息
The pigeon family is a group of stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with a worldwide distribution. The white-headed pigeon is in the genus Columba, the same as the Rock dove (C. livia) from which the domestic pigeon is derived. It has no subspecies.<p>The white-headed pigeon was originally classified as C. norfolciensis, but the 1953 discovery of an 18th century painting indicated that the description was likely for a different bird on Norfolk Island, perhaps the Pacific emerald dove (Chalcophaps longirostris). It is most closely related to the Metallic pigeon (C. vitiensis).
- 学名
- Columba leucomela
- 命名信息
- Temminck, 1821
- 目
- Columbiformes
- 科
- Columbidae
- 属
- Columba
分布与栖息地
The pigeon's habitat is from Cooktown, Queensland to southern New South Wales, with increasing numbers now found in eastern Victoria. It can commonly be found in tropical regions, subtropical rainforest, scrub, watercourses and street trees. Since colonisation of Australia, their numbers have decreased but they have thrived on the introduced Camphor laurel (Cinnamomum camphora).
- 迁徙
- Complete migrants
行为
The white-headed pigeon's nest generally consists of scanty twigs and is usually placed high in canopy up to 18 metres. It tends to lay one cream-white egg. Breeding is mostly from October to December.<p>These pigeons are often found alone, in pairs or in small flocks. They are very quiet and elusive. Their flight is swift and direct.<p>This bird's diet consists of fruits and seeds, with its favourite food being the invasive camphor laurel (Cinnamomum camphora). White-headed pigeons will consume buds, flowers, leaves, and ripe and unripe fruits of the camphor laurel year-round. They feed in tree canopies alone or small groups, but may also feed on the ground from time to time. Larger groups may gather when feeding on camphor laurels, up to 100. It also eats fallen grains in cornfields.[citation needed]
保护状况
- 种群趋势
- rising
照片
分布
鸟叫声
其他鸟类
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Malurus assimilis
A small bird with a very long blue tail that is held cocked. Breeding male has a bright pale-blue helmet, black breast, purple back, and chestnut shoulders. Small pale tips are sometimes visible on the tail. Over much of the species’s inland range, females are overall grayish birds with pale fronts and long blue tails; however, females of the subspecies found in the sandstone regions of the Kimberley and Arnhem Land have contrasting blue crowns and backs. This species occurs over much of arid inland Australia and is found in open vegetation.
Black-crowned Sparrow-Lark
Eremopterix nigriceps
Small, finchlike lark of arid zones with strong sexual dimorphism. Male is striking with black underparts, whitish cheeks, and black crown. Female is overall gray-brown overall and lightly-streaked; best identified by short, heavy bill. In flight shows dark underwing coverts and black tail (from above black tail sides). Breeds on desert plains with scattered bushes. Song is a repetitive short phrase of clear, high-pitched whistles. Call is a short, buzzing "Zzz" or "Zik, zik…"
Taiwan Hwamei
Garrulax taewanus
Lightly streaked brown songbird with starkly pale eyes found in edge habitat and scrubby areas in Taiwan. Chinese Hwamei, which has been introduced in Taiwan, has an unstreaked head, dark eyes, and distinctive bluish lines behind the eyes. Hybridization threatens this species’ survival. An accomplished songster, but unlike the Chinese Hwamei, does not mimic other species.
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