Nicobar pigeon

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Nicobar pigeon
An adult Nicobar pigeon

Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Columbiformes
Family: Columbidae
Genus: Caloenas
Species:
C. nicobarica
Binomial name
Caloenas nicobarica
Synonyms

Columba nicobarica Linnaeus, 1758

The Nicobar pigeon or Nicobar dove (Caloenas nicobarica,

Indonesian Archipelago, to the Solomons and Palau. It is the only living member of the genus Caloenas alongside the extinct spotted green pigeon and Kanaka pigeon, and is the closest living relative of the extinct dodo and Rodrigues solitaire
.

Taxonomy

In 1738, the English naturalist

binomial name Columba nicobarica and cited Albin's work.[4] The species is now placed in the genus Caloenas erected by English zoologist George Robert Gray in 1840 with the Nicobar pigeon as the type species.[5][6]

Two subspecies are recognised:[6]

Based on

Indopacific radiation, to which the Nicobar pigeon also belongs.[8]

The following cladogram, from Shapiro and colleagues (2002), shows the Nicobar pigeon's closest relationships within Columbidae, a clade consisting of generally ground-dwelling island endemics.[7]

Goura victoria (Victoria crowned pigeon)

Caloenas nicobarica (Nicobar pigeon)

†Pezophaps solitaria (Rodrigues solitaire)

†Raphus cucullatus (dodo)

Didunculus strigirostris (tooth-billed pigeon)

A similar cladogram was published in 2007, differing only in the inverted placement of Goura and Didunculus, as well as in the inclusion of the pheasant pigeon and the thick-billed ground pigeon at the base of the clade.[9]

C. nicobarica is a quite singular

fruit-doves, which seems to be part of the same radiation.[8]

Whether it is possible to clarify such deep-time

period.[10]

From

Pacific locality; it probably disappeared in the 19th century and most likely succumbed to introduced European rats. It is placed in Caloenas as the least awkward possibility; its true affinities are presently indeterminate and it is perhaps more likely to represent a distinct genus of the Indopacific radiation of Columbidae.[12]

Description

It is a large pigeon, measuring 40 cm (16 in) in length. The head is grey, like the upper neck plumage, which turns into green and copper hackles. The tail is very short and pure white. The rest of its plumage is metallic green. The

cere of the dark bill forms a small blackish knob; the strong legs and feet are dull red. The irises are dark.[13]

Females are slightly smaller than males; they have a smaller bill knob, shorter hackles and browner underparts. Immature birds have a black tail and lack almost all iridescence. There is hardly any variation across the birds' wide range. Even the Palau subspecies C. n. pelewensis has merely shorter neck hackles, but is otherwise almost identical.[13]

It is a very vocal species, giving a low-pitched repetitive call.[13]

Distribution and habitat

On the

ICGS Vikram found the lighthouse tower "totally covered" in vines, indicating rampant regeneration of vegetation – but perhaps also that damage to the island's forest was severe, as a cover of creeping plants is typical of early succession stages, while a photo of the lighthouse taken before the tsunami shows rather mature forest.[14]

Found in Australia

A Nicobar pigeon was found by the

Bardi Jawi Indigenous rangers on the Dampier Peninsula in the western Kimberley, Australia in May 2017. As part of biosecurity measures, it was reported to quarantine services and was removed by Australian Department of Agriculture officials.[15][16][17] In 2023, another individual was found on Green Island, off the coast of Cairns. Green Island Resort's environmental manager contacted authorities, but there are currently no plans to relocate the pigeon.[18]

Behaviour and ecology

The Nicobar pigeon's breeding range encompasses the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India, the Mergui Archipelago of Myanmar, offshore islands of south-western Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, southern Cambodia and Vietnam, and many of the small islands between Sumatra, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands. On Palau, the only distinct subspecies C. n. pelewensis is found.[13]

The Nicobar pigeon roams in flocks from island to island, usually sleeping on offshore islets where no

conspecifics – to an adult Nicobar pigeon, it is obvious at a glance which flockmembers are neither potential mates, nor potential competitors for mates, nor old enough to safely guide a flock from one island to another.[13]

This species nests in dense forest on offshore islets, often in large colonies. It builds a loose stick nest in a tree. It lays one elliptical faintly blue-tinged white

egg.[13]

In 2017, several individual Caloenas nicobarica were sighted in the Kimberley region of Western Australia with a juvenile captured at Ardyaloon (One Arm Point), near Broome - the first time the bird has been sighted on the Australian mainland.[19]

Conservation

Nicobar pigeons are hunted in considerable numbers for food, and also for their gizzard stone which is used in

near threatened species.[21]

Gallery

  • Painting by Henrik Grønvold
    Painting by Henrik Grønvold
  • An adult at the Milwaukee County Zoological Gardens with iridescent scapulars
    An adult at the
    Milwaukee County Zoological Gardens
    with iridescent scapulars
  • Close up of the head
    Close up of the head
  • The white tail is the most conspicuous feature of adult Nicobar pigeons, particularly when seen at a distance in the twilight.
    The white tail is the most conspicuous feature of adult Nicobar pigeons, particularly when seen at a distance in the twilight.
  • Nicobar pigeon in a U.S. zoo
    Nicobar pigeon in a U.S. zoo
  • Nicobar pigeon at Munich Zoo Hellabrunn
    Nicobar pigeon at Munich Zoo Hellabrunn

References

  1. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22690974A93297507.en
    . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  3. ^ Whitehead, Rev. G.; Dictionary of the Car (Nicobarese) language; published 1925 by American Baptist Mission Press; pp. xxvi-xxxii
  4. ^ Linnaeus, Carl (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1 (10th ed.). Holmiae:Laurentii Salvii. p. 164.
  5. ^ Gray, George Robert (1840). A List of the Genera of Birds : with an Indication of the Typical Species of Each Genus. London: R. and J.E. Taylor. p. 59.
  6. ^
    Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (2020). "Pigeons"
    . IOC World Bird List Version 10.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  7. ^ a b Shapiro et al. 2002.
  8. ^ a b Johnson & Clayton 2000; Shapiro et al. 2002.
  9. ^ Pereira et al. 2007.
  10. ^ Johnson & Clayton 2000; Shapiro et al. 2002; Slack et al. 2006.
  11. PMID 25027719.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link
    )
  12. ^ Fuller (2000): p. 174–175.
  13. ^ a b c d e f Grimmett et al. (2009).
  14. ^ Sankaran (1998), IHMDN (2005), ICG (2007), Rowlett (2008).
  15. ^ "Bardi Jawi rangers discover Nicobar pigeon". Kimberley Land Council. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  16. ^ Collins, Ben; Mills, Vanessa (5 May 2017). "Dodo's relative, Nicobar pigeon, found in north-west Australia's Kimberley region". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  17. ^ Wahlquist, Calla (5 May 2017). "Pigeon related to dodo found on Australian mainland for first time". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  18. ^ "Dodo relative's mysterious appearance on tropical island baffles bird experts". ABC News. 2023-11-10. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
  19. ^ Laurie, Victoria (5 May 2017). "The dodo's gorgeous island-hopping relative finds its way to our shores". The Australian. Sydney. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
  20. ^ Bereford, Denise. "The Nicobar Pigeon Gizzard Stone: Going Extinct For Jewelry". Pigeonpedia. Retrieved 2023-08-11.
  21. ^ BLI (2009).

Sources

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Caloenas nicobarica.
Wikispecies has information related to Caloenas nicobarica.
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