My favorite pigeons, a little lab note because I like pigeons.

Field season will be over for a while, and because my lab notes have been ending on mild to moderate downers, I thought I would make a nice, happier one. I have decided to do a review of some of my favorite pigeon species, why?

because I like pigeons.

(and also because columbiformes, the family of pigeons and doves is large and very few members are known to the general public... and I think more people should know about these awesome birds. )

the pigeons in this note are in no particular order, so just enjoy my little list :)

 

The white-crowned pigeon, one of the first animals I was ever scientifically fascinated by.

On my first trip to the Florida keys, I had one major goal in mind (other than eating as much key lime pie as possible). I wanted to get ALL of the rare birds in the region. unfortunately, I was only able to see two Antillean nighthawks ( pretty rare in any circumstance) and the rear end of a white crowned pigeon. As it turned out, I had come at the wrong time to see white crowned pigeons ( my family visited over spring break, the majority of white-crowned pigeons come to Florida in the summer). However, this was the start of a long love-affair with poorly-studied pigeons, and might be the reason I am doing this study today ( as it may affect rarer pigeon species)

I don't know what got me about this cryptic and shy bird, maybe it was the funky way it ran about in the mangroves, unlike any other bird I had ever seen. Perhaps it was the sheer mystery of the rare creature, whatever it was, the white-crowned pigeon has joined the short list of the species that have gotten where I am now in zoology.

this is my list-within a list of the species I think are most responsive for getting me into science, I highly recommend you check them out it you haven't heard of them :)

Swamp-darter (fish), tessellated-darter (fish), common yellowthroat (bird), rock pigeon (bird), white-crowned pigeon (bird), swallow-tailed kite (bird),Hypancistrus contradens (fish), sheepshead minnow (fish).

 

Ghost of the mountains, The Pale Mountain-pigeon

I can't say If I love, or hate birds like the pale-mountain pigeon. For starters, this pigeon is only found found in the Solomon Islands, a place I might not ever find myself. the big thing about the pale mountain pigeon that intrigues me is what we know, or don't know, about this bird. for starters, the species's wikipedia page is two sentences long, and the Cornell lab of ornithology only has 36 reports of the species. Island birds like the pale mountain pigeon have been known to speciate quickly from other birds, and new species form readily. Maybe a few species are still out there, living on a single pacific island, never seen by human eyes (or maybe seen but not recognized). birds like the pale-mountain pigeon also worry me, this bird might be critically endangered, but is so poorly studied, it might begin to die out before we have even notice.

But maybe it's fine out there, living it's best pigeon life without much human interference.

Even more fascinating is the thought poorly studied birds like the pale-mountain pigeon might be comprised of multiple species that are only thought to be one. (This happens all the time with poorly, and even some well studied birds) maybe, one of these cryptic species is endangered, and can only be saved if it is recognized first.

See, you're into taxonomy and systematics now.

 

The orange dove, it's just orange.

There's not much to say about this pidge, for starters, it lives on a few islands in Fiji, and spends most of it's time hunting for fruits, seeds and bugs. unlike many other pigeons, it maintains territories when not in the breeding season. The reason I put this bird on this list is ITS RIDICULOUSLY ORANGE.

That's it. It's orange.

 

The pin-tailed green pigeon, the pigeon trying to be a parakeet

A small, bright green bird that eats mainly fruit and lives in the mountains of Asia, hurtling through the trees while whistling.

Sounds like a parrot, but no, it's a pigeon! from far away, the green pigeon, with it's long tail and bright plumage could even be mistaken for a parakeet. perhaps a member of the Psittacula genus like the rose ringed parakeet below.

 

Fascinatingly, much of the pin-tailed green pigeon's range is devoid of similarly sized Psittacula parrots. this left a "gap" in these ecosystems perfectly fit for a parrot, but filled by a pigeon first.

The case of the Asian "parrot pigeon" is a perfect example of convergent evolution. Convergent evolution occurs when two, unrelated animals develop similar characteristics due to filling the same environmental "job" or Niche. Because both Psittacula parrots and pin-tailed green pigeons eat fruit and live in mountainous, forested environments, they evolved the same life style and body shape,

pretty cool huh?

 

The blue-eyed ground dove, back from the dead.

In 1941, the blue-eyed ground dove was believed extinct by most scientific athourites. It was a reasonable extinction as the blue eyed ground dove only lived in the Cerrado region of Brazil, an area often used for cattle ranching and charcoal production, this left little room for the doves and was believed to have driven them to extinction. However, in 2012, 12 birds where found by a team of ornithologists doing a survey of the region. Unfortunately, the plot of land where the doves were found was slated for iron mining, and the dove's future was in danger. Thankfully, areas around the property where the doves where found is sounded by another private property, but this one is slated to be a wildlife preserve. In 2018, the region where the dove was found was purchased, along with the surrounding area. Today, the blue-eyed ground dove's preserve is open to the the public, although only 15-20 individuals are believed to remain in the wild, and blue eyed ground doves are strongly protected by the Brazilian government.

 

Crested quail dove, the mountain witch of Jamaica

In the forests of Jamaica lives a mysterious bird, called the mountain witch dove by locals, the crested quail dove got it's name due to it's haunting song. Compared to Jamaica's owls, the "mountain witch" has a much spookier call, and thus may have become a bird associated with magic, like the owl in western mythology.

here's a link to the bird's song if you want to take a listen for yourself:

 https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/164725?__hstc=161696355.5f1a12c5dd8965ffb4bb79418eb0dfe4.1575592671723.1575592671723.1575755944205.2&__hssc=161696355.3.1575755944205&__hsfp=4190249175 

Like most other pigeons that live on islands, the crested quail dove in endangered. Unlike other island but the doves. The crested quail has a large group of dedicated fans working to protect it..... Yay!

 

SMOL!!!!!!!

The plain-breasted ground dove looks like your regular neotropical columbiform, until you take a look at a photograph of this bird to scale with another object, like this one:

 

This dove is only about the size of a house sparrow! this makes the plain-breasted ground dove the smallest columiform in the world, and adorable!