Pacific Emerald Dove - BirdForum Opus

Male
Photo © by RMD
Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory, Australia, October 2005

Chalcophaps longirostris

Identification

Female, subspecies rogersi
Photo © by Hans&Judy Beste
Yarraman State Forest, Queensland, Australia, May 2016

23–27 cm (9-10¾ in) A small and short-tailed dove.

• Emerald-green on wings and mantle
• Primaries and outer secondaries slaty black with chestnut on inner webs
• Dark brownish purple neck and breast
• Black tail

Male

• Brownish head
• White shoulder
  

Female

• Lacks white shoulder bar
• Brown tail

Juvenile

• The wings look more golden than green, but the green is also less intense than with a mature bird.

Flight

• Small and stocky dove
• Diagnostic pale lower back-bars

Distribution

Found in from Lesser Sundas to Australia, New Guinea, Vanuatu and New Caledonia.

Taxonomy

Formerly considered conspecific with Asian Emerald Dove.

Subspecies

Immature
Photo © by Hans&Judy Beste
Toowoomba Shire, Queensland, April 2018

Three subspecies recognized^[1]:

• C. l. rogersi eastern Lesser Sundas, eastern Australia, New Guinea and adjacent islands
• C. l. longirostris in northern Australia (northern Western Australia and Northern Territory)
• C. l. sandwichensis Santa Cruz Island, Banks Island, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia

Habitat

Different types of forest: rain forest, mangroves, gallery forest, clearings, orchards and plantations near forest, in Australia also in drier habitat.

Behaviour

Often quite tame, but hard to discover in the forest. May feed inconspicuously on ground. Usually found when dashing in direct flight through the forest. Flies often into windows and may be attracted by lights at night.

Breeding

Breeds all year round. Nest is a platform of twigs in a tree or a bush. Lays 2 eggs.

Diet

Feeds mostly on fallen fruit and seeds, also on invertebrates (termites, snails, insects). May feed in farmyards together with domestic fowl. Usually feeds singly on the ground, sometimes in pairs.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. BF Member observations

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Pacific Emerald Dove. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 19 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Pacific_Emerald_Dove

External Links

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