N. Am. hybrid Eurasian Collared Dove? (1 Viewer)

[Chuck A. Walla]

This showed up last night. Most Eurasian Collared are more uniform then this. Could this be a hybrid or a morph I haven't seen before?

 

[Th_SQ]

This showed up last night. Most Eurasian Collared are more uniform then this. Could this be a hybrid or a morph I haven't seen before?

The bird is obviously in very active moult (primaries, tail feathers, mantle, coverts, ....) ! This probably explains why it does not look uniform : new feathers are not the same color as old ones.

 

[njlarsen]

They look quite similar to the ones that fly around where I work (Dominica, the Caribbean). I have always assumed it was a result of some breeder trying to change the color of the birds, maybe resulting in partial albinism/leucism.

Niels

 

[Chuck A. Walla]

The bird is obviously in very active moult (primaries, tail feathers, mantle, coverts, ....) ! This probably explains why it does not look uniform : new feathers are not the same color as old ones.

Good point, I hadn't considered that. It's just that this is a fairly comon year round yard bird despite what the range maps say, and this is the first I'd seen.

Thanks

 

[Mos]

This is not the European Collared Dove, S. decaocto, which occurs wild in Europe.

It is the Barbary Dove or Ringneck Dove, Streptopelia risoria, which to the best of my knowledge hasn't established viable wild populations.

They are kept as pets from ancient times. Escaped birds are often seen. They could be related to the African Collared Dove, Streptopelia roseogrisea, of which it is sometimes considered a subspecies. So, rather than European Collared Dove, think 'African Collared Dove'.

The colouring of the two species are quite similar, but as you mention, the European Collared Dove is indeed more uniform, besides bigger, 32cm vs 25cm, or 12.5 inches vs 10 inches. The mottled appearance in the smaller Barbary Dove is due to breeding for colour variations. In this one the collar almost disappears, something you won't see in the European Collared Dove.

 

[Chuck A. Walla]

This is not the European Collared Dove, S. decaocto, which occurs wild in Europe.

It is the Barbary Dove or Ringneck Dove, Streptopelia risoria, which to the best of my knowledge hasn't established viable wild populations.

They are kept as pets from ancient times. Escaped birds are often seen. They could be related to the African Collared Dove, Streptopelia roseogrisea, of which it is sometimes considered a subspecies. So, rather than European Collared Dove, think 'African Collared Dove'.

The colouring of the two species are quite similar, but as you mention, the European Collared Dove is indeed more uniform, besides bigger, 32cm vs 25cm, or 12.5 inches vs 10 inches. The mottled appearance in the smaller Barbary Dove is due to breeding for colour variations. In this one the collar almost disappears, something you won't see in the European Collared Dove.

Well that's something I'd considered but I'm totally unfamiliar with S. risoria and was unaware it had a color phase like this. I had seen some alabaster white doves with collars but since even S. decaocto is still considered to be a bit exotic I didn't pay much attention to them. I only just realized since you mentioned it that these are all a different genus then any local bird and I would think it highly unlikely that it could interbreed so I will go for S. risoria or as Sibley calls it a Ringed Turtle-Dove. It is still completely unlike any S. decaocto I have ever seen and they outnumber local Doves at times here.

While I doubt this is a member of a breeding colony I will watch more closely for odd looking Collared Doves in the future, the environment in S Nevada is not too unlike N. Africa after all.

Thanks

bob

 

[screaming piha]

This is not the European Collared Dove, S. decaocto, which occurs wild in Europe. It is the Barbary Dove or Ringneck Dove, Streptopelia risoria, which to the best of my knowledge hasn't established viable wild populations.

The colouring of the two species are quite similar, but as you mention, the European Collared Dove is indeed more uniform, besides bigger, 32cm vs 25cm, or 12.5 inches vs 10 inches. The mottled appearance in the smaller Barbary Dove is due to breeding for colour variations. In this one the collar almost disappears, something you won't see in the European Collared Dove.

Specific ID between Collared and Barbary Doves is very tricky without a proper view of the underwing (white = Barbary) and tail tip. This patterning is normal for moulting Collared, and Collared does often have an obscured neck ring when moulting. Perhaps both species show these patterns.

Also, there are/were feral populations of Barbary in Mallorca & Tenerife, but Collared is crowding them out these days. I've heard tell that Collared out-competes the smaller Barbary, but a mixed pair and hybrid young I saw in Tenerife makes me wonder if it's genetic swamping as much as physical competition for food or space.